The news that the National Cancer Institute had finally released its report on the health effects of radioactive fallout from nuclear testing is only a few days old. We will be updating this page with new links to informational and support services for victims and survivors of the atomic testing of the Cold War era. Please check our list of articles and related links at the bottom of this page. We are in the process of developing this list and will be adding more shortly, so please check back regularly.

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) today (8/01/97) admitted that fallout from the 1950's atomic bomb tests blanketed the nation at levels far inexcess of what the government has admitted to now or in past decades. In its statement it said there could be between 10,000 and 75,000 cases of thyroid cancer among those exposed. They remain firm in their stance that there is no certain link between exposure and effect -- still apparently having not yet heard about, nor read the results of studies of the thyroid cancers and disorders found among the Marshall Island Natives and the residents surrounding Chernobyl. The NCI puts these numbers out as "the worst case scenario."

Speaking for those most heavily exposed to those atomic tests,and well as from an awareness of continued health problems and deaths, we would like to state for the record just what the "real" worst case scenario is. The worst case scenario is not that the NCI can't find a link between dose and effect, no federal agency involved with public health has ever done so, or better yet ever wanted to. It is the fact that the cat is now out of the bag and off and running. The dilemma is not worrying about dose and effect, but how the federal government responsible for the exposures in the first place can quickly catch the cat and get it back in the bag. Sorry Folks, "We won't be fooled again!"

The real worst case for the American people is that the Iodine 131 radioactive isotope that is the basis of this study is only one of scores produced by the fissioning process that powered these test devices. Absent from the study are such isotopes as Strontium 90, Cesium 137, Zirconium, and on and on. These all have half-lives much longer than those of Iodine 131,with many still in existence today. Many of these like Strontium 90 seek out tissues of the body and there become lodged and remain for the lifetime of the persons exposed. Strontium 90 for instance seeks the bones,and from there radiates the fragile marrow cells that produce the bulk of human blood. Such exposures can lead to leukemia and other cancers.The worst case is that if the Iodine 131 resulted in 10,000 to 75,000 cases of thyroid cancer alone, how many cases did the other isotopes produce,and of those hundreds of thousands of cases that they would induce, how many innocent, unwitting, and unsuspecting Americans died?

What is needed is not more time for the scientists at the NCI to figure out what the "story" is. They have had 14 years on this study so far as it is, and are releasing it now, not in the interests of the public, but because somebody leaked it to the press and they got caught. What is needed now is for a large dose of the truth, and the leadership to order it be given the American people.

We call on President Clinton, to do just that, stop the denials, and release all the information concerning the fallout exposures and resulting health effects from Nevada bomb tests, and most importantly to issue an executive order to insure this type of situation never happens again.

In view of possible implications of the information released August 1, 1997 by the National Cancer Institute to the health of those persons exposed to fallout from 1950's atomic bomb tests, Downwinders feel it is important to issue the following advisory:

Downwinders take strong exception to the position of the National Cancer Institute and other federal agencies concerning a clear linkbetween exposure to Iodine 131 from bomb test fallout and thyroid cancer.We call on the NCI to reconsider their position in light of the data and documentation currently available to the public on the health problems suffered by the natives of the Marshall Islands (also exposed to U.S. bomb test fallout during the 1950's), the residents surrounding the testing sites of the former Soviet Union in Kazakhstan and in the Russian Federation, and those exposed to the fallout from the 1986 Chernobyl accident (especially children.)

We are deeply offended by the fact that both the National Cancer Institute and a host of other federal agencies have withheld this information from the American public for decades, and that this information wasreleased now only because the agencies had no choice after it was leaked to the press. Therefore Downwinders demand a comprehensive investigation into such clearly unacceptable behavior. Downwinders fully expects the same agencies to do all within their power to try to minimize the public outcry generated by the release of this information. We wish to make clear Downwinders will fight any actions to make light of this issue in the strongest and most vocal manner.

Nevertheless, Downwinders feels it is important to ask the American public not to view this new information with panic, or unnecessary fear and anxiety, even among those from known hot spots of potential high-risk. Downwinders would strongly advise all persons in such areas to please notify your personal medical care providers of this information during your next regular visit, and to discuss this matter with them. In addition we strongly advise all Americans, no matter what their radiation exposures may have been, to become familiar with the various self-help practices available in order to provide early warning of potential thyroid problems, and to learn to use them as a matter of common sense.

The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) has made available on their website step by step instructions on a self-thyroid examination, and provided additional information on the human thyroid and its diseases. We strongly advise all Americans to take the time to visit this site, and learn what actions they can take to protect their personal health and well being! Please take the time now to visit the site at, http://www.aace.com/guidelines/card.html  

Links To Other Related Information:

Questions and Answers

National Cancer Institute

Deseret News -Editorial

Las Vegas Sun - Article

ABC News Article on NCI Report

Nuclear Control Institute(NCI), Washington D.C.

State of Nevada Nuclear Waste Project Office

Institute for Energy and Environmental Research Homepage

Health Effects of Low-Level Ionizing Radiation

Downwinders Links Page-More New Information!

Back to Downwinders Home