Studies of participants in nuclear tests. Final report, 1 September 1978-31 October 1984

Technical Report · Wed May 01 04:00:00 EDT 1985

OSTI ID:5606365

Robinette, C D; Jablon, S; Preston, T L

A study of mortality, by cause of death, was done on a cohort of 46,186 participants in one or more of five test series. The series studied were UPSHOT-KNOTHOLE (1953) and PLUMBBOB (1957) at the Nevada Test Site, and GREENHOUSE (1951), CASTLE (1954), and REDWING (1956) which were conducted at the Pacific Proving Ground at Enewetak and Bikini. The participants were traced individually by the use of Veterans Administration records. For the participants in each series, the number of deaths attributed to particular causes was compared with the number expected to occur at US cause- and age-specific mortality rates. A total of 5113 deaths from all causes was ascertained; this was 11.1% of the number of participants. The number was, however, only 83.5% of the number expected at US mortality rates. Mortality from leukemia among the 3554 participants at SMOKY - 10 deaths below age 85 - were 2.5 times the expected number. When the leukemia deaths are compared to other deaths in all six data sets, the differences among the series are not significant. No cancer other than leukemia was ascertained to have occurred in significant excess among SMOKY participants and the number of deaths from other cancers (67) was less than the number expected at population rates (83.8). The total body of evidence cannot convincingly either affirm or deny that the higher than statistically expected incidence of leukemia among SMOKY participants (or of prostate cancer among REDWING participants) is the result of radiation exposure incident to the tests. 19 refs., 27 tabs.

• Research Organization: National Research Council, Washington, DC (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: AI08-78EV01577
• OSTI ID: 5606365
• Report Number(s): DOE/EV/01577-1; ON: DE85013516
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

560151* -- Radiation Effects on Animals-- Man
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
ATMOSPHERIC EXPLOSIONS
BIKINI
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
BIOLOGICAL RADIATION EFFECTS
CASTLE PROJECT
DELAYED RADIATION EFFECTS
DISEASES
ENIWETOK
EXPLOSIONS
GREENHOUSE PROJECT
HEMIC DISEASES
ISLANDS
LEUKEMIA
MARSHALL ISLANDS
MICRONESIA
MILITARY PERSONNEL
MORTALITY
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NEOPLASMS
NEVADA TEST SITE
NUCLEAR EXPLOSIONS
OCEANIA
PERSONNEL
PLUMBBOB PROJECT
RADIATION EFFECTS
SMOKY EVENT
UPSHOT PROJECT
US DOE
US ORGANIZATIONS