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US admits radiation experiments on 20 000 veterans

The United States department of defence has revealed that as many as 20 000 service veterans and their family members are at risk of radiation induced illnesses stemming from experimental treatments they received from the 1940s to the 1960s.

The new revelations are the latest chapter in a lengthy report to Congress authorised by President Bill Clinton on human radiation experiments sponsored by the US government from 1944 to 1994. Many of the experiments were performed without the patients' consent, while others, though experimental, were considered state of the art medical practice.

The defence secretary, William Cohen, in a preface to the report, stated that most of the military projects conducted from 1944 to 1994 were "common and routine medical practices" and were listed in the "spirit of openness."

The military detailed that it sponsored about 2400 radiation experiments. One of the more popular projects carried out entailed the insertion of radium rods into the nostrils of servicemen with inner ear and sinus problems. Typically, a 50 milligram rod of radium was pushed through the patient's nostril and left to lie against the eustachian tube for up to 15 minutes at a time. This pro-cedure was repeated every few months. The radiation induced mucosal shrinkage and allowed the ears and sinuses to drain. Between 8000 and 20 000 American air and submarine crew received such treatments, which allowed them to work in extremes of atmospheric pressures.

The Pentagon report said that the procedure was highly effective in curing ear problems and allowed thousands of air and submarine crew to function in the military. Many children with enlarged tonsils and adenoids also underwent the procedure. The thousands of military personnel who received such treatments are at increased risk of head and neck cancers.

Another project listed was one in which conscientious objectors fulfilled their service obligations by volunteering for ingesting irradiated foods. The Pentagon report said that about 500 projects were conducted between 1944 and 1974, and an additional 1900 experiments were conducted more recently, between 1974 and 1994. Currently experiments are under strict federal supervision, and with the full knowledge and consent of experimental subjects.

In 1995 a government advisory panel determined that the United States should offer compensation to participants in and survivors of the radiation experiments. Last March $6.5m (£4m) was given in compensation to 16 people who received plutonium injections in cold war radiation experiments. The number of claims against the government are sure to increase after these latest revelations.

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