Government Spends $50,000 to do Useless Uranium Tests for Sick Gulf War Veterans

Canada has now joined the U.S. and England to provide useless uranium tests for sick veterans. In February 2000, the Uranium Medical Project, an independent group of scientists discovered significant levels of Depleted Uranium in the urine of British, Canadian, and United States veterans and the bones of deceased Canadian veteran, Terry Riordon. After the Uranium Medical Project released a statement citing positive results, the Canadian government promised to carry out tests on sick Canadian veterans.

Mary Ripley-Guzman, coordinator of the Uranium Medical Project, was asked by the CPVA, the Canadian veterans' association to submit a proposal to do the testing. The government never followed up on the proposal to have the testing done at a University research laboratory but instead chose a commercial lab. Again at the request of the CPVA and several journalists, Ms Ripley-Guzman called the lab and was able to determine that they did not have the equipment and methodology to be able to do the proper testing which would involve concentrating enough Uranium to be able to determine the isotopic ratio of U238 and U235 in the veterans urine. This was written up in a report that was sent to the CPVA and passed on to the government and journalists.

The lab was unconcerned that they would not be able to detect the levels of U235 that would allow them to calculate the percentage of DU as the government had not asked them to do this. The government chose to ignore the report which pointed out the flaw in the methodology and equipment and proceeded with the study, which was destined to prove nothing.

Ms Ripley-Guzman estimates that the study cost at least $50,000.

Meanwhile the Uranium Medical Project is continuing with the study funded by the veterans. The study has been peer reviewed by an international group of scientist and is being presented at the European Society of Nuclear Medicine, which is being held in Paris in September.

The tests were carried out in a Canadian University research lab that used mass spectrometry to analyze the depleted uranium content in the urine of British, Canadian, and US veterans and the bones of a deceased Canadian veteran. This is the first peer reviewed study that shows significant levels of Depleted uranium in people exposed to inhaled Depleted uranium .It demonstrates the internal contamination of Gulf War Veterans with depleted uranium

More than 300 metric tons of Depleted Uranium, a radioactive waste was fired during the Gulf War. For each Uranium penetrator that strikes a target, it is estimated that up to 40-70%(*1) of the Uranium would burn and form aerosolized particles that are of respirable size (5 micrometers). If only 1-2% burned, it would produce 3-6 million grams of aerosolized particles(*2).

In the ten years since the Gulf War, none of the governments involved have tested for inhalational exposure to Depleted Uranium, even though it is estimated that half a million allied veterans and many more Iraqi civilians may have been exposed to the estimated 30-60 million grams of aerosolized Depleted Uranium(*3).

Perhaps no one wants to admit to having engaged in radioactive warfare. If there is no proper testing and no proof, then maybe it never happened.

References:

*1 Army Environmental Policy Institute Report
Health and Environmental Consequences of Depleted Uranium. Fliszar
June 1995 P.78 Metal of Dishonor ref #7

*2 See Len Dietz's paper:
Contamination of Persian Gulf War Veterans and Others by Depleted Uranium

He now thinks that estimate is low by a factor of 10, i.e 30-60 million grams of aerosolized DU. This revision was based on new measurements taken from soil samples and analyzed in Kuwait. The study by Bou-Rabee took samples from the top 3 cm of soil of the battlefield. They estimated that there were 4kg of DU per square km.

*3 British Medical Journal August 1999.
There are reports of serious health problems and increased cancers and leukemias in the local populations.

Answer to Questions from the Press, Veterans, and Members of Parliament Regarding the Canadian Government's Choice of Commercial Laboratories to do Depleted Uranium Testing on Gulf War Veterans.

I investigated both of the labs that the government has chosen. I spent several hours discussing the methodologies and the equipment. After consulting with our lab and the scientists who have been involved with the methodology and the DU testing at the Uranium Medical Project, out conclusion is as follows:

Both of the labs chosen by the government do not have the equipment or methodologies that are as sensitive as the methodology and equipment our lab is using. They may not be able to detect the levels of uranium isotopes in the veterans' urine.

One of the labs is using neutron activation, a technique that we used two years ago. Although we did get some positive results on the most highly positive patients, many samples were in dispute due to the lack of sensitivity and the high margin of error. We have discarded this method. We are currently using a multi-collector Finnigan MAT 262 thermal ionization mass spectrometer (TIMS mass spectrometer) at a University research lab in Newfoundland.

The second lab uses ICP-MS, an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. This method is not as sensitive as the method we are using. It is questionable whether they would be able to detect the levels of U235 that we are encountering in some of the veterans using the methodology that they currently use. If they could follow the state of the art method recently developed by AFFRI (Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute), the results would be acceptable. This method is described in Health Physics. 78(2): 143-6,2000 Feb. This is far beyond what the DND has asked them to do. I would be surprised if a commercial lab was willing to do the research and experimentation involved. Also do they have personnel experienced in bio assay analysis of DU? It would be wonderful if they could help with the DU testing as many veterans are waiting and many cannot afford to be tested unless the government will pay.

The next problem would be who is going to analyze and interpret the data. We have Len Dietz, a physicist who has more than 30 years of research experience in this area. He specialized in mass spectrometer design and application. He might be willing to help the ICP-MS lab and so far has been very generous in donating his time, as he believes that this research is extremely important. Dr. Durakovic is also an important part of the project as he understands the physics and has spent 30 years doing research on the medical effects of radioisotopes.

Neither Len Dietz nor Dr. Durakovic would want to be part of a government contract as that might compromise their scientific independence. However, they might be willing to help by providing their benefit of 60 years of research and expertise if the data were made available for publication in scientific journals.

Veterans need to know that the research will be done properly and subsequently published, not just stored away. Our short-term aim is to publish the results. Our long-term aim is to provide some treatment. (See the April 2000 Uranium Medical Project Brief.)

Over the last year our lab has done a lot of experimenting in order to isolate and concentrate the Uranium in order to do the isotopic analysis. It must be understood that this is not normal monitoring of workers who might have been exposed a day or a week ago. We are testing for inhalational exposures that date back almost 10 years. We are looking for a particular ratio of the isotopes that indicates Depleted Uranium. We have analyzed a piece of DU shrapnel and can compare the isotopic ratios in the veteran's urine to the isotopic ratios in the DU shrapnel. Veterans who breathed high levels of aerosolized DU could have incorporated it into their bones from where it is a released into the urine. The positive results we obtained from bones of a Canadian veteran who died last year are evidence of this process. It is also supported by the medical literature.

With the TIMS mass spectrometer and a serious research facility we are able to measure parts per billion and parts per trillion that are still being released from the bone. A regular commercial lab does not need to be this accurate. Our lab has a ICP-MS machine but doesn't use it for the DU testing as it is not as sensitive as the multi-collector Finnigan MAT 262 thermal ionization mass spectrometer (TIMS mass spectrometer).

The TIMS mass spectrometer we are using is one of three or four available in Canada. We have been trying to get another lab with similar equipment and methodology to help with the testing for almost a year. We have just recently found a lab in Europe that has equipment that is sensitive enough and scientists with the expertise to do the research.

The government never contacted us to ask for our labs methodology, equipment, or the credentials of the scientists involved. Len Dietz and Dr. Durakovic have done decades of research and have published many peer reviewed scientific articles in these fields. Without the proper experts to interpret and validate the work, the data is quite useless.

Our lab is a class 100 lab and research facility. The labs the government has chosen are not in this category. They are accredited commercial labs. They have a commercial accreditation called ISO 9000. It is not an evaluation of scientific standards. Our University research lab has more sophisticated equipment e.g. the TIMS mass spectrometer costs around $1 million. They also have an ICP-MS which is what the accredited commercial lab has (this costs about $350,000).

When the DND says that our lab is not "accredited" it is basically saying that it is not a commercial lab. The bottom line is that a research facility does not have the $100,000 per year that it costs to pay for the ISO accreditation, and if they did have that kind of extra money they would not spend it in a commercial accreditation process.

Research labs are interested in research and peer review by international scientific journals and institutions. There are only three or four TIMS mass spectrometry labs in Canada, none of them are ISO accredited and they also don't want to be involved in this scientifically difficult and politically tricky work.

The DND did contact us to ask for Terry Riordon's results and we could not discuss these due to confidentiality and the wishes of his widow. The results are currently under peer review and will be presented at international scientific conferences and in peer reviewed scientific journals.

Mary Guzman
Uranium Medical Project Director