adiation ag such as ently, the ¥ are enributing during their employment. aberrations cannot continue to increase with the hensive interpretation of these data will be the accumulated dose because of the finite life span of subject of a future report. lymphocyte. For long periods of ‘eived by of volving E. itudies have™ A more compre- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS aberrations. This work was done with the support of the Cytology of Exfoliated Bronchial Cells U. Sputum cytology has been used by Saccomanno ucocytes as a possible indicator for detecting incipient or to Thoro- actual lung cancer in uranium miners exposed to ugh as medical ‘and laboratory findings. chronic expo- sure, one would expect a constant equilibrium level ls have during World War II and gives factual data on esti- mated body and lung burdens of plutonium, as well the adiation- However, one must use caution when interpreting quantitatively results obtained from chromosome analysis, as the number of radon daughters and other stressing agents in ura- Pb (about nium mines. ociated experimentally in animals exposed to plutonium Because lung cancer has been cbserved S. Atomic Energy Commission, Division of Bio- medical and Environmental Research, under Contract AT-(30-1) 4284 to the School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Rochester, and under Contract W-7405-ENG-36 to the University of Califomia, Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory. This report covers information and work that er prod- aerosols, we have added the cytological examination has been carried out over a period of many years and con- of bronchial cells to our periodic studies of the and has involved many persons who have contributed tradiated. UPPU Club members. ftes of In a few subjects, moderate to severe dysplastic changes have been observed. been The significance of these changes is not clear except sed prior and rame aber- to the success of the project. The special con- tributors have all played a prominent part in data collection or analysis in their particular special- in one man who was a heavy cigarette smoker ty. (3 packages per day). by E. Campbell, M. Milligan, and W. Moss at the We are now in the process of The analytical urinalysis procedures were done developing standardized procedures for collecting Occupational Health Laboratory, LASL. and preparing sputum samples. calculated the current body burden values by means This presents a J. Lawrence mphopenia Sizable problem, since our subjects live in differ- of the PUQFUA program. S, one ent parts of the country often without easy access were made by P. Lee, M.D., Los Alamos Medical in lympho- to large medical centers. Center, and W. Christiansen, M.D., Department of observa-— [ Since exposure to tobacco smoke and other toxic Roentgenographic studies Radiology, University of Utah. In vivo measure- ibility materials is known to alter the normal cytology of Ments of plutonium within the lung were performed iltures bronchial cells, it is difficult to interpret the by P. Dean at the Health Research Laboratory, LASL. Pulmonary cytology studies were made by G. Sacco- have been observed effects. dings in have asked all of our subjects to give up smoking. manno, M.D., Pathologist, St. Mary's Hospital, 2 pluto- There is also a need to develop a standardized Grand Junction, Colorado, and Michael Stewart, M.D., aver a 7- nomenclature to be used in reading and reporting Pathologist, Los Alamos Medical Center, Los Alamos, 2xXternal sputum specimens. New Mexico. Primarily for this reason, we At periodic intervals, we will D. Petersen, Health Research Labor- ric yield send bottles containing fixative for collecting atory, LASL, assisted in procuring the samples for 1ld be Sputum samples to each subject, who will then return pulmonary cytology. e re- the samples to us for analysis. performed by D. Petersen at the Health Research s more than a moderate cellular atypia, he will be Laboratory, LASL. asked to submit samples more frequently. Medical Group, LASL, directed the physical examina- an- found, he perut nosome If anyone shows We will also obtain sputum samples for cytological examination from local nonexpesed personnel of the same age and smoking habits for purposes of comparison, idying osed to iation, H. Whipple, M.D., Industrial tion portion of the study, including clinical laboratory measurements. J. Healy, LASL Health Divi- Sion, gave constructive criticisms in his review of the manuscript. to the ‘posure The chromosome studies were VI. CONCLUDING REMARKS This report attempts to reconstruct the expoSure conditions of Los Alamos pluto nium workers Many other persons too numerous to mention have contributed importantly to the work. A spe- cial acknowledgment is extended to J. Langham for photographic and autoradiographic work; H. Ide for 19