Documents nuclear weapon 19 results

"The aetiology of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) is largely unknown. Despite compelling evidence for ionising radiation as a cause of most forms of leukaemia, CLL was not found to be radiogenic in early studies. Herein we describe the recent evidence for causation of CLL by ionising and non-ionising radiation, including a nested case-control study conducted within a cohort of 94 517 US workers at four nuclear weapons facilities and a nuclear naval shipyard. Forty-three cases of CLL deaths and 172 age-matched controls were identified with follow-up up to between 1990 and 1996. Radiation exposure from external sources and plutonium (lagged 10 years) was assessed for each worker, based on monitoring records. The excess relative rate (ERR) was estimated for workers receiving elevated doses compared to unexposed workers, controlling for possible risk factors. The ERR per 10 mSv was -0.020 (95% confidence interval: <0, 0.14) based on all exposed workers. However, for workers receiving <100 mSv, the ERR per 10 mSv was 0.20 (-0.035, 0.96). Recent studies of uranium miners and other populations have shown elevations of CLL possibly associated with ionising and non-ionising radiation. New studies should use incident cases and sufficient latency to account for the expected lengthy induction period for CLL."

"Corporations operating U.S. nuclear weapons plants for the federal government began tracking occupational exposures to ionizing radiation in 1943. However, workers, scholars, and policy makers have questioned the accuracy and completeness of radiation monitoring and its capacity to provide a basis for workers' compensation. We use interviews to explore the limitations of broad-scale, corporate epidemiological surveillance through worker accounts from the Savannah River Site nuclear weapons plant. Interviewees report inadequate monitoring, overbearing surveillance, limited venues to access medical support and exposure records, and administrative failure to report radiation and other exposures at the plant. The alienation of workers from their records and toil is relevant to worker compensation programs and the accuracy of radiation dose measurements used in epidemiologic studies of occupational radiation exposures at the Savannah River Site and other weapons plants."

"Based on six years spent investigating worker health and safety conditions at U.S. Department of Energy sites that were formerly engaged in the production of nuclear weapons, the authors report on a set of common themes that emerged in their interviews with workers. The initial focus of the authors was on behavior-based safety programs and their investigation revealed deep-seated mistrust of management by workers. The authors discuss the importance of trust issues for worker training and suggest that "creative mistrust" should be cultivated in training programs."

"De nos jours, le nucléaire opère un retour en force. Les préoccupations liées aux approvisionnements énergétiques et au réchauffement planétaire ont réactivé l'intérêt pour l'électricité d'origine nucléaire. En témoignent les nombreux programmes lancés ou relancés aux Etats-Unis, en Europe, en Chine et en Inde. Parallèlement, sur le plan militaire, la stratégie de dissuasion reste au coeur des politiques de sécurité des grandes puissances, dont la France. La Bombe, elle, est convoitée, comme instrument de puissance et de prestige. Les crises nord-coréenne et iranienne sont les dernières en date ; d'autres vont-elles suivre ? A trop vouloir se positionner "pour" ou "contre" le nucléaire, à force d'en avoir peur ou d'être fasciné, on en oublie ce qu'il est. L'Atlas mondial du nucléaire est unique en son genre. Il aborde l'ensemble des problématiques liées à cette technologie : sa production, ses applications civiles (électricité, médecine, etc.), mais aussi ses usages militaires (propulsion navale, armes nucléaires). Sans complaisance nais sans catastrophisme, il répond de manière dépassionnée à des questions essentielles concernant un univers complexe, trop souvent dominé par le secret et le manque de transparence. Qui fait quoi dans le secteur nucléaire en France ? Un accident comme Tchernobyl pourrait-il se produire en Europe aujourd'hui ? Que faire des déchets radioactifs ? Prend-on des risques en exportant des réacteurs nucléaires vers des pays du Moyen-Orient ? Va-t-on vers une nouvelle course aux armements ? Que prévoient les accords internationaux dans ce domaine ? Pesant les coûts, les dangers et les avantages du nucléaire, l'atlas montre qu'il est possible d'établir des barrières techniques et juridiques solides entre ses versants civil et militaire. "

"The U.S. government recently implemented rules for awarding compensation to individuals with cancer who were exposed to ionizing radiation while working in the nuclear weapons complex. Under these rules, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is considered to be a nonradiogenic form of cancer. In other words, workers who develop CLL automatically have their compensation claim rejected because the compensation rules hold that the risk of radiation-induced CLL is zero. In this article we review molecular, clinical, and epidemiologic evidence regarding the radiogenicity of CLL. We note that current understanding of radiation-induced tumorigenesis and the etiology of lymphatic neoplasia provides a strong mechanistic basis for expecting that ionizing radiation exposure increases CLL risk. The clinical characteristics of CLL, including prolonged latency and morbidity periods and a low case fatality rate, make it relatively difficult to evaluate associations between ionizing radiation and CLL risk via epidemiologic methods. The epidemiologic evidence of association between external exposure to ionizing radiation and CLL is weak. However, epidemiologic findings are consistent with a hypothesis of elevated CLL mortality risk after a latency and morbidity period that spans several decades. Our findings in this review suggest that there is not a persuasive basis for the conclusion that CLL is a nonradiogenic form of cancer."

"BACKGROUND: Depleted uranium is being used increasingly often as a component of munitions in military conflicts. Military personnel, civilians and the DU munitions producers are being exposed to the DU aerosols that are generated.
METHODS: We reviewed toxicological data on both natural and depleted uranium. We included peer reviewed studies and gray literature on birth malformations due to natural and depleted uranium. Our approach was to assess the "weight of evidence" with respect to teratogenicity of depleted uranium.
RESULTS: Animal studies firmly support the possibility that DU is a teratogen. While the detailed pathways by which environmental DU can be internalized and reach reproductive cells are not yet fully elucidated, again, the evidence supports plausibility. To date, human epidemiological data include case examples, disease registry records, a case-control study and prospective longitudinal studies.
DISCUSSION: The two most significant challenges to establishing a causal pathway between (human) parental DU exposure and the birth of offspring with defects are: i) distinguishing the role of DU from that of exposure to other potential teratogens; ii) documentation on the individual level of extent of parental DU exposure. Studies that use biomarkers, none yet reported, can help address the latter challenge. Thoughtful triangulation of the results of multiple studies (epidemiological and other) of DU teratogenicity contributes to disentangling the roles of various potentially teratogenic parental exposures. This paper is just such an endeavor.
CONCLUSION: In aggregate the human epidemiological evidence is consistent with increased risk of birth defects in offspring of persons exposed to DU."