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18 INJECTED IN 1945 PLUTONIUM TESTING ( WASHINGTON POST )

HREX; CONSENT ISSUES; ETHICS; HUMANS; NEOPLASM; PLUTONIUM; PLUTONIUM INJECTION EXPERIMENT; PUBLIC INFORMATION RELEASE

Location - DOE/NNSA NUCLEAR TESTING ARCHIVE Address - P.O. Box 98521 City - Las Vegas State - NV Zip - 89193-8521 Phone - (702)794-5106 Fax - (702)862-4240 Email - NTA@NV.DOE.GOV

NEWS STORY

Never classified

0001

NV0700063

WASHINGTON POST - NEWSPAPER

1994 Aug 27

2012 May 14

THIS ONE-PAGE DOCUMENT IS A PHOTOCOPY OF AN ARTICLE ENTITLED, "18 INJECTED IN 1945 PLUTONIUM TESTING," BY GEORGE C. WILSON, WASHINGTON POST STAFF WRITER. FROM THE BYLINE, THE PUBLICATION WAS PROBABLY THE WASHINGTON POST NEWSPAPER. NO DATE OF PUBLICATION WAS GIVEN. THE ARTICLE PROVIDES A SUMMARY OF THE PLUTONIUM INJECTION OF 18 PEOPLE BETWEEN 1945-1945, STATING THAT THE PROJECT WAS SPONSORED BY THE MANHATTAN ENGINEER DISTRICT, WHICH WAS A CODE NAME FOR THE GOVERNMENT'S SECRET EFFORT TO DEVELOP THE WORLD'S FIRST ATOMIC BOMB. THE ARTICLE STATES THAT QUERIES OF ERDA ABOUT THE PLUTONIUM STUDIES AT 4 DIFFERENT HOSPITALS WAS PROMPTED BY AN ARTICLE ABOUT THE STUDY PROGRAM THAT OCCURRED IN THE FEBRUARY 23 (1976) ISSUE OF THE WASHINGTON-BASED NEWSLETTER, SCIENCE TRENDS. ERDA WAS QUOTED AS SAYING THAT ONE PERSON IS SURE TO HAVE GIVEN HIS CONSENT TO THE INJECTION OF PLUTONIUM IN A LEG AFFLICTED WITH BONE CANCER THAT WAS SCHEDULED FOR AMPUTATION. A SPOKESPERSON WAS QUOTED AS SAYING "RECORDS ON THE PLUTONIUM EXPERIMENT ARE SO UNCLEAR THAT IT IS NOT KNOWN HOW THE TEST SUBJECTS WERE SELECTED AND THAT IT IS POSSIBLE THAT MORE THAN ONE OF THE 18 WAS TOLD THE TRUTH ABOUT THE INJECTIONS." ERDA STATED THAT THERE WERE NO PLANS TO LAUNCH AN INVESTIGATION TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE STUDY. THE AGENCY "CONCEDED THAT SUCH AN INJECTION PROGRAM WOULD BE CONSIDERED UNETHICAL TODAY."