UNITED

NATIONSDistr.
GENERAL

GENERALASSEMBLY

A/452/3~- October 1360
ORIGINAL:INGLISHFi f teenth session

ANNUAL P.2CGRESS REPORT OF 'I'HE SCIE:t>iTIFIC COl:iMI'ITEEON THE EFFECTS OF ATOMIC RADIATION FOR 1 960

1.

The Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation was established byresolution 913 (X) of 3 December 1955 at the tenth session of the General Assembly _;i ts 1,mrk was continued by resolutions 1147 ( XII) of 14 Nov emb er 1957 ) 1:9n (XIII) of

13 December 1958 a nd 1376 ( XIV) of 17 No v ember 1959 at t he twelfth, t hirteenth andf ourteenth sessions, r espectively .

It has the following members:

fo.rc entina,

Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Czecho slovakia, France, India, Japan) l,fexico,
Sweden, Union of Soviet 8ocialist Republi cs, United Arab Republic , United Kin gdom
oi' Great Britain and Norther n Ireland, l;nited State, of America.
Sev enth session
2.

The Corr:mittee held its sev enth session at Hea dquarters f r om 11 January to

22 January 1960.

Profes so r Rolf Sievert of Sweden served ns Chairman, and:Cr. E.E. Pochin of the United Kingdom was elected to serve as Vice-Chairman
ad interim in the ab sen ce of Dr. V.R. Khanolkar of India.

3.

At this session, the Committee considered the followin g t opi cs :GeneralAssembl y resolution ~ 376 ( XIV); certain techni cal q_uesti ons) inclur".ing themeteorological and p ilysical aspects of fall-out, feed chain prob l ems, l .:) w-do se
do se-effe ct relatio ns _: :plans of discussion o f g enetj ·: and ca t the eighth session.

It also reviewed the plansr'CJr

14 ( cartori -1 4 ) protl ems

the jcint United Eations/~-Torld Health Crganiz a tien Seminar on Use of Vital and Health St atistics for Genetic
and Radiation Studies held in Geneva, from

5 to 9 September l '.:>50, and the ti:r:e 2nd

p l ace o f th e ei;/1t h s es i: : ion.

60 - 2416 2/ •••A/~528
Enc;lish
Fai:::e 2

4.

In response to a SU[[estion n:ade by the Committee at its sixth session ( A/1~.119,

annex I, para. 2), the World 1'Ieteorological Ore:anizati:m arranged for a group of
experts from eight countries to attend the seventh session of the Corrimittee andto participate in its discussions of p1°oblems relating to fall-out rriechanism.

Inthe course of these discussions, the group delivered a set of some twenty valuable
r;resentations covering topics in meteorology and fall-out.

A resolution expressing

t:1e Con:mittee 's deep appreciation to the World Meteorological Organization (mm) andto the individual experts for the assistance they had given the Corumi ttee during
the session was adopted unanimously.

5.

In response to a further suggestion of the Con:mittee (A/4119, annex I, para. 3) 7

its discussion of food-chain problems at the seventh session was materially assisted
by a report prepared by an expert group of the Food and Agriculture Organization of
the United Nations (FAO) and by the presence and contribution to the discussion of
the rapporteur of that group as part of the FAO

representation.

A resolution

expressing the Con:mittee s gratitude to FAO for the report of its Expert Group on
1

Radioacti Ye ltaterials in Food and Agriculture and for its assistance to theCorr.mittee during the session was adopted unanimously.

6.

In response to sections II, III and V of General Assembly resolution 1376 (XIV),

the Corcmittee gave preliminary consideration and study, in consultation withappropriate specialized agencies and the International Atomic Energy .4gency, toappro1Jriate arrangements for stimulating the flow of information and data andencouraging genetic, biological and other studies.

The Con:mittee decided to set

up two sub-groups respectively to develop further the relevant physical andbiclcgical topics, and to prepare n:aterial for its further consideration at theeighth session.

ihese sub-groups met during the seventh session of the Committee;

cne of them later met at the European Headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva,
frcm 14 to 1 1 September 19150; both sub-groups met in Geneva during the period of
the eichth session of the Committee.
(.

In consequence of its consideration of sections II cmd III of General Assembly

resolution 1376 (XIV), the Ccrr:mittee requested its Secretary to addi ess a letter0

to States Eembers cf the United Nations and members of the specialized aG"encj_es,
expressing the ,dshes of the Co11rnittee to continue the flow of information re1e,;ant
to its work and drm1ing the attention of I:!ierncer States to certain snecific prc-bler.:is.

I ...

i\/1+528
EnrlishPage 3In response to this request) the Secretary of the Committee addressed a letter>
dated r April 1960, to States l/,embers of the United Nations and members of thespecialized agencies) expressing the wishes of the Committee and suggesting means
whereby this might be accomplished.

Listed in annex I of the letter were thecountries and organizations offering assistance in the field ,)f sampling andanalysis of' radioactive material.

IJ:his annex was later revised to j_nclude

additional offers received up to 31 August 1960.

Attached as annex II to the letter

was a statement prepared by the Committee at j_ts seventh session,, su2Eestinc: ways
and means whereby its requests for relevant information could best be channelled,in the respective countries, to the appropriate national scientific organizations
and committees, as well as to individual scientists.

8.

At this session, Dr. lv!anuel l~artfnez-Eaez of Mexico was elected Chairman, and

Dr. F. Hercik of Czechoslovakia Vice-Chairman, for the eighth and ninth sessions.
United Nations/World Health Organization Seminar

9.

In response to a suggestion by the Corrmittee (A/4119, annex I, para. 5), theUnited Nations and the World Health Organization (WHO) co-sponsored a Seminar on
Use of Vital and Health Statistics for Genetic and Radiation studies, which washeld from 5 to 9 September 1960 in Geneva.

At this Seminar, twenty-one papers were

presented and discussed, and much useful information was exchanged between
geneticists, epidemiologists) vital and health statisticians and civil registrars,
on the future potentialities of vital and health statistics and ciYil registration
procedures as a source of data in genetic and other studies, particularly in
relation to the assessment of the effects of radiation in human populations, and on
possible practical means for overcoming present limitations.
the Seminar included:

The topics covered bystatement of the :problem; present sources of information;

current potentialities; radiation exposure and somatic effects; 1rorbidity surveys;
genetic surveys in selected populations; uses of routinely collected information
for i;enetic use; information storage, retrieval and processing; biometrical genetii::s.
The proceedings of the Seminar will be published.

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A/452<'3
EnglishFace lt

Eir::-hth session

10.

'Ihe Ccrr:mittee held its eighth session at the European Headq_uarters of theunited l'Jations in Geneva from 19 to 3G September 1960.

Dr. Hanuel r1:artfoez-Eaez

of Eexico served as Chairman, and Dr. F. Hercik of Czechoslovakia served as,fice-Chairrr:an.
11.

At this session J the Con;mi ttee discussed tsenetic problems J

c1 4, fall-cut andassociated subjects, and dose calculations; laid plans for its 1962 comprehensive
report to the Gene1·al Assembly; further considered and studied,JD

the basis of:reports by its sub-.':'.:ro1J.ps ,• certain arrangements as requested by the General t"ssemblyin sections II, III and V of resolution

131 6 (XIV), and prepared j_ts annual progress

report for 1960.
12.

A report on the Ccn:mi ttee I s consideration f-t:(l study of appropriate arrangements

for stimulating the flow of information and data, and for encouraging genetic,
1h"!Jiolocical and other studies, including those concerned with C ·, that ,.rill
elucidate the effects of radiation exposure on the health of human populations,called for in section V of General Assembly resolution 1376 (XIV) 1 was adopted
unanimously by the Corr.mittee and is appended to the present report as annex I.

13.

'The Corrmittee noted with satisfaction the ,mrk done by the participants inthe :3eminar on Use of Vital and Health Statistics for Genetic and Radiation Studies.
It strongly supported their Consensus of Cpinion which it appends as annex II.
'Ihe Con:mi ttee was :r;ileased to note that, in se·,-eral countries, co-operation alreadyexists between the official authorities concerned with registration of vital eventso.nd with the collection of vital and health statistics on one sideJ and the students·Jf hlJ.ITjan genetics and radiation epidemiolocy on the other.

It expressed the hopethat this co-operation will give a lead to similar co-operation in .qn increasing
DU11ber of countries.

It also endorsed the ·value, in certain cases) of regional

co-operative arrangements whereby 1wre significant information might te achieved,and expressed the )pinion that both the Statistical Office of the United Nations
and the epidemioloe;ical branch of HHO sho11ld play the r'ullest possible part inassisting nations to undertake such pro1;ramr:1es of survey and information retrie-1al,
snd in standardizin[, co-ordir:ating snd collatin;; results.

1Ihe Con:mittee expressed

its thanl:s to WHO for its co-sponsorship and to tlcose Hemcer States and theirinstrun:entali ties whose supJxrt and co-operation n;ade the Seminar possible.

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A/4528~nglishFage 5

14.

The Committee decided to request that it rnie-ht hold its ninth session at theEuropean Office of the United Nations from 13 to 24 r~arch 1:;i61J 2n,i its tenthsession at United Nations Headquarters, New York, from 4 September to

15 September 1961, or, if the needs of its work should so require, from 2<'3 August to
15 September 1961.
Contracual study

15.

Following the approval of the Committee's proposed progran:r::e by the General

Assembly in resolution 1376 (XIV), and the associated financial provision, aSpecial Service Agreement was drawn up between the United Nations and theInternational Con:missions on Radiological Protection and on Radiological Units andMeasurements.

Under this .Agreement, the Corr.missions were to study the methods ofevaluation of the exposures of man to ionizing radiation resulting from medical
procedures, with special reference to radiation-induced diseases.

Accordingly,

an ad hoe Joint Study Group of these con:,missions met at United Nations Headquarters,
New York, from 25 to 2·J January 1960, and in Stockholm, from 1 to 9 July 1960.

A

report on the deliberations and conclusions of the International Commissions is tobe submitted to the Scientific Committee by the end of 1960.
Flow of infor~aticn

16.

~he Con:mittee has a continuing interest in the somatic effects of radiation,and expressed its appreciation to the International Atomic Energy Agency ( IAEA) for
its part in the organization of the recent Conference en the Relation of Padiation
ramage to Radiation rose in Eone.
17.

~e Committee has received and hopes to continue to receive information onradioactive contamination, radiation levels and radiobiological questions frcm
States Members of the United Nations and members of the specialized agencies, ::tnd
from the specialized agencies, IAEA and the International Con:rnissions onRadiological Protection and on Radiological Units and Measurements.

During theperiod frcm 15 June 1959 to 1 September 1960) the Committee received so;;,e200 reports i'rcm States Members of the United Nations or members of the specialized
agencies) and from specialized agencies and the IAEA.

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r.j), r::;c:,prli·__,1'--~EnglishPage 6Further reports

1:3.

The Corrmittee intends to submit annual progress reports to the General

Assembly, to report to the 1~ssembly on each phase of its scientific work separately,as it is completed, and to submit a further comprehensive report during ortEfore 19<::2.
Staff and consultant services

19.

The Corrmittee compared the greatly increased volume, scope and specializationof the infonration it is receiving in preparation for its next comprehensive reportwith that available to it in 1958 for the previous one.

It expressed the opinion

that the preliminary stages of sun:marization and collation probably could not be
handled by a scientific staff of the same size as previously.

'Ihe Committee

decided to draw the attention of the Secretary-General to this temporary situation
and request him, as in the past, to make appropriate flexible and ad hoe
arrangements by means of additional staff or consultants.

In the Committee's view,

these should not need to exceed a total of about one and a half man years ofscientific effort in all.

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,:)452:
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Rc:;f,JF':L TC 'J]-r;::: GEI'f.t:RJ.L .'SSEi 1iBLY FF;:;:;::;=:,:RED IN
1W:::,:.0P·,:)1T;_).c; TO RESOLCTE:I: 1:_/1 -~ C:rr)

1.

Under General 1~,3sembl/ resolution 1376 (.~IV); the United rTations :3cientific

Cc1rJ11ittee on the Effects of _ t.:@i,:: Radir.:.tion he.::.: :x:en requested to consider c.iLl
study appropri:::,te arnn:_:cements for stimulo.tin; the fly:r :::;f informs.ticin c:nd d:_.t:relative t8 the effects af r:~.r::. i2.tian en

mo.n end his envircnn:ent, and to consider

and study more effective ::.rran:;err:ents for enc.JUc. 2.~;ing genetic, biolo 0 ical 2.nd01•other studies, including thJse concerned with c l\ thc•.t will elucidate the effects
of r2.diation exposure on the health of human populations.

2.

The major flow of rnateri.:::'.l to the Committee thus far has come from a

relatively few nations.

It l1i..'.S teen predominantly inf:nmati ve as to radiati,on.·.:nd radioactive cont2r11i112.tL;n levels, less with re:;ard to epidemiological andother biological asrects.

The C:Jlliillittee has revie,,;ed these scientific data smci.

literature and has made avs,il&ble its findings.

Hswever, the Committee has notreceived from all l~ember States the sarr..e amount of assistance implicit in theselection and submission of dat2. that it judges relev2.nt to its field of work.
The Colliillittee is anxious to receive a continuin;; ?nd increasing flow of f:::\cts
cf :physical and bio-rcedic:c1.l import both from th,:::se i.,Iemter States who are
represented on the Colliilli ttee ::md from those whG "re not J and it considers it tothc:,t effect desirable thf_t, when appropriate, the -::c.crunittee avail itself more
1

actively of the experience of the latter in its scientif'ic deliberations as aworking group.

3.

The Committee will ccntinue to work closely 11ith interested United nations

agencies and certain other ;roupsJ whose scientific n:eetings and studies h:.1°1e
already teen of great c.ssistance to the Comnittee) and hcres that r,:ember St:::::.tes
will also co-orerate with these CJrganizations) in 2.ddition tCJ continuing to se1lcl
relevant data ,lirectly to the C0IYJ11i ttee.

4.

'Curing its seventh sescion the CcJBnittee decided thc,,t one ,of the mo:;tfrcm G.reas not i;overeda letter T,:::ts

;.)452/3~nglish
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therefore addressed to c,11 lie:ncer States, outlining the ty:i:e of data required
from cert::cin e,reas of the ;lo te.

ReferenceW,),3~::i::.H1e in this and a subseq_uent

letter to offers by lf;emcer .3t::,tes and IAEJ, to :.::,112,l:;"se Scimples for ccuntries
which lack the necessary .C':.:,cilities.

5.

During its eighth session, the Committee revie',;ed the available data onradiation exposure.

'Iheir principal conclusions relev::.r.nt to this as:i;ect of thereport are noted in paragraphs ,5-10 below.

6.

Natural activity:

MeasureILents of natural radiation are of particularimportance since not only is this at the present time the maJor radiation
source to which the world population is exposedy cut 2,lso, es:i;;ecially considering
the knmm variations in the n:::,tural radiation levels, it is a valuable basiswith which the magnitude '.:lf 2,rtificial radiati'.:ln :3Jurces can t:e compared.

The

ccm:i:;onents of the natun.l racli2,,tion dose for v,hich al.ditional data are neededboth on a regional and on a world-wide t:asis are those delivered by g21r.maradiation from the earth's surface and by alph2, e;,1itters in bone.

The stirmld,ionof research on these as:i;:ects is particularly L11:9ort::mt.
7.

Environmental contamination from nuclear tests:

Environmental contamin2.ticm

frCJm nuclear tests, as in the p2,st, has continued to Jccupy the centre of:::cttention of the Committee, since radiation frc.G1 this source involves the whole
population of the world.

The Cc,rrr.mittee has revie',;ecl the data that are now

available on fall-out from nuclear tests.

Consider3.ble addition2,l information

14 has ceen obtainedon the basic patterns of c Jnta.mination from fall-out 2.nd C
1recently.

While the C,Jmmittee is anxious to obtain more precise information :::nmany as:i::ects, it is none the less e:n:1uEr:.t that certain Jf tte :i_:ar2rr:etres, such as
the rates and amounts of deposition, are knovm with an accuracy sufficient for
the estimation of some c:::mr;onents of the tissue dc,ses from fall-i::;ut.

'rhe

Cc1:ri.illittee has considered the accuracy with which the present average dose to t:cne
and gonads c&n le assessed.

This assessn::ent depends primarily on direct

measurement of strontiun1-SO in human bone and of cae:3ium-137 in the body) "butthis must t:e supplemented, particularly for the purposes cf future prediction,ty rr:.easurements of levels in diet and the food ch:::,.in.

'The Ccrunittee regrets tl':.escantiness of data from 2ever2l large and heavily p:::pulated areas.

It recognizes

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,'/ 115 :?.:2:::n,Ilish,' nne:: I
Page 3that the J-ct::.ining of improve( inl'J1mation has teen 2.c.l"~el~- limited b:'i thein::-dequE.cy of information :m the ccmpJsition and :;1i~·L1 of diets_; thisinfJrn1s.ticm is necessary ooth for 0.esignin2: adequ:::.te ;:;::,:,pling prc;zn:,rr.rr.es ,jnd fJr
the interpretatiDn of results.

L, this connexion; c-:..iet:.:cy inform::,tion c.Lssenbled

by F,D has been of consider::.,ble assistB.nce to the C A&,1i ttee.

S.

~n \lironmental c Jntemi1~~~t ion fL''JLl :r·adi 00..ct i ve "\1'-"ste s :lviuch \raluc1.Cle study

h::.;,,s already been undertaken ,::,y g::,verrnr.ental agenc iec c.nd internationalorganizations on various prJ-)lei;1s in the disposal of ::_'acli,Jacti ve wastes.

The

exposure ,of the :population Jf the world from this sotE"ce ,Jver the next seven_l
decades is difficult to estimate because of the lac:: of information both as todispos2.l p Jlicy and the fraction of fission wastes ·,1hich might be used in1

industri2.l processes.

'iJe can e::pect that technic:::1-l progress should enable

hWll2.n exposure from this source tc, ce more readily c:::ntrolled.

The Committee

wishes to continue to receive info1-mation on all si;:::nificant releases ofradioe,cti ve w2.ste into the envir')nD,ent.

It notes thc.t relevant information is

also received from Member St2.tes by the IhEA and other lini ted nations agencies,
and that these organizations ,::: :;nsti tute an appr Jpri:.::,te ch;:,nnel for transmission
1of it to the Committee.

The Conr:i1ittee attaches iuports.nce to detailed studies of

the tehaviour of artificial r2.dio2.cti ve materials in the environment.

InfornmtLxc

obtained in this way is necessary for improving estin,~,tes of exposure of n:c:nkicd
from :i;:ossible future relea.ses ol' rc,_dioacti vi ty.

9.

Medical exr;osures:

1l_s in the past, the Committee .rill continue to give0

considerable attention to ir.edic::.l e:::i;:osures for t,.10 rec.sons:firstly} the

exposure is considerable in some countries and, seconct.ly, :i;;erscns exposed for
medical reasons may provide2.

:::;:c,oup sf particular inte:c"est for subsequent study

cf dose-effect rele:;,tionships.

Fo::. the latter :i::urpose, the importance of0:::.dequate control and recordin 0 is 2.pparent 2nd the1e is r,Jom for improverr.ent inthis respect in many countries.

In this connexion, and est the request of the

C::::n:mittee, the Internatiorw.l C0,~ll,1ission ')n RadiolJci,::::::.l Frotecticn E,nd theL1ternational CCJr.mission Jn ?,c.6.iolo,-=:ical Units 2.ncl ~:e2.surer::ents are conductin:;:3uch studies on 1;-;edical exposures.
10.

rJ,.:::cupational exr;0sure:

The :.·:::,_diaticn rlose re:::1-1.lting l'rcm ,occupsti :::nal

exposure is sufficiently well i :::ctIB:cented f,or the :::cssessD:ent Jf populs.ti.::n dDse
1

1

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A/4528
EnglishAnnex I
Fage 4from this source.

It contributes at present cnly a srrall fraction of the total

dose to the population in technologically advanced countries.
11.

:Curing the r:ast sixty years, and especially during the last few of them, muchhas been learned of the tiological effects of radiation by experiments on livingorganisms and their parts and by observations on hun:an beings exposed by accident
or treated by design.

'This active and diverse research has divulged valuable basic

understanding of ~1ow ionizing radiation exerts its effects and much inforrr_aticn ofsemi-quantitative predictive value) especially relating to gross effects resulting
from high doses.

But the considerations and predictions needful to sound andconfident action of all kinds in the nuclear era have progressively embraced lower
doses and dose rates, and effects progressively more and more delayed - including
those upon subsequent generations - and more and more refined in nature:at thesame time, both the numbers of people potentially affected) and the administrative
2nd legal needs of precision have increased.

Physical data has improved rapidly

allowing a continually greater accuracy in the estirrate of tissue dose.

Because of

the inherent variability of biologic material, comparable precision of information
probably cannot be obtained in the biological sphere) but a closer appreciation of
dose-effect relationships can and should be evolved.
12.

Ideally; there is no substitute in prediction for sound quantitative

observations relevant to n:an as he lives, complemented though this must be byunderstanding based upon a wide variety of observations in cellular) rrarralian andother areas of radiobiology.

lviuch inforrration can corre only from the slow andi;::ainstaking collection of information about irradiated and other groups of persons.
In considering radiation research at its present pbase, tbe Corr.mittee has therefore
accorded such activity a very high priority.

13.

Essential to evaluation of any study or· radiation effect en population is the,::ollection of relevant biological inforrration concerning that population.

Such

information ranges from relatively simple indices of the genetic health or structureof the population at large to the rates of incidence) in comr:arable exposed andunez:i;:osed S'rcups; of diseases such as leukemia,. skin cancer: or cataract which canpossibly te radiation-induced.

Governreents and their statistical and epidemiologicalagencies are peculiarly well-placed to advance such work} which could perhaps; inscrr:.e areas) profitably be the subject of regional co-operation and standardization.

A/4528
Enclish),nnex I
Fa,~e5'Ihe Corr.mi ttee hopes that the proceedings of ti1e joint UN/HHO :3eminar on Use of Vital
and Health Statistics for Genetic and Radiation Studies will assist suchdevelopments.

It particularly draws the attention of the General Assembly to thejoint and considered opinion of the experts who attended the Seminar,. as reviewed
by the Committee and appended to its report as annex II.

It notes tl1at countries

having large populations living in areas of high natural radiation may have special
opportunities for profitable studies.~/

The Committee notes with satisfaction that

WHO is willing and able to be of much assistance in connexion with surveys of
com:i;:arable exposed and unexposed groups and is) indeed) actively engaged in studying
the feasibility of projects of this kind, such as the possibilities which might
exist among groups exposed to radiation occupationally or for medical purposes.

14.

The CorrJnittee notes that information collected by various national authorities

becomes more valuable when it is collated with corresponding material from othercountries.

It therefore hopes that all national authorities engaged in such studies

will make available their results and will i;ather them according to standards ofprocedure and practice which n:ake them comparable uith those of other countries.

15.

In respect of both hereditary and other diseases, there is much to be done,even in the technologically most advanced countries, by way of standardizing
nomenclature and of improving diagnosis and recording and handling of inforr::1ation,
A concrete suggestion which has been n:ade concerns appropriate expansion and::r:;.odification of the International Classification of Causes of I:eath in so far asthese relate to genetic or radiation-inducible conditions.

It is relatively simple

to obtain certain measures of the genetic health of a population, of its genetic
structure and progression, and even to obtain some inforrration about mutation, fromvital and health statistics, but only if these are of an adequate standard ofaccuracy and appropriately collected and arranged.

16.

Hany of the biological ex:r;:erin:.ents essential to permit more accurate

evaluation of physical data in terms of effects on rran) fartici..uarly those urgently
needed in the low dose and genetic fields, are costly in trained worirnrs andrraterials.

2/

The Corr,rr;ittee therefore urges that when extensive and lon 6 -range

Ir. tl1is ccr:r;exicn,, tt.e Ccrr.rri ttee dra';srs s.tter;ticn to tte '.Cie,:s r~f tl-:.,:c ~T==·=
E::pert Ccrrilllittee on the Effect of Radiation on :ifor;:an Heredity: Investi~·ationsof ni;h natural 1~adiation (:mo Technical Report Series ITo. 166).
~-s/li-5:::::3
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1.nnex I
Fa~e r]biolo1!ical research pror::Ta:!Lmes are to be undertaken tbe Cc:unittee be infor:c1ed) sothat it c2.n }:now where it rrny look for results in civeni'ieldsand also can help to::croid unr,.ecessary exi=enditure of effort.

As far as the inforrraticn en burr.an

i:01::;ulations is concerned) the Con:mittee wishes to emphasize the value of suchexchanges of views as are mentioned in r,:aragraph 6 of annex II.

17.

~,:any other problems reciuire to be worked out, including biological measures,:;f d,:ise: teclmi11ues ::'or reducing the severity ,Jf the effects ,of radiation e:q:;osures,the 1~ossible localized effects of transmutations} such as those of c}\ and in
c:eneral a fuller understanding of rr.echanism of radiation effects at all levels
2,ll endeavours in which new advanced techniciues and knowledge are rapidly being
applied and which require survey and experimentation of a great diversity of scaleand Lind.

'I'he Committee hopes that 1,:ember States will continue this researchand ,,1ill 11ake the results available for the benefit of all.

18.

I 1he Committee notes that n:any V~embers of the United rJations have considerable

2.nxiety concerning ionizing radiation.

It draws attention to the fact that among-:;he r;roper corollaries of such anxiety is the :i;articir;ation in the gathering anddissemination of the required data> so that the accuracy of the assessn:ent ofradiation from all sources can be improved.

19.

'The Ccm.nittee reiterates the view that progress in the solution of biologicalproble:c;s c·i' the effects of ionizing radiation can be n:.ade, but both sustained,::ff,:Jrt and tin:e - n:easured in several decades - will be needed.

It is aware that,.

in this nuclear age, rr,uch der;ends upon mutual confidence and upon a cclLlllunal
ar:lvance of lm,:iwledge in which each member of the international coillffiuni ty carries
to the f11ll its share of effort; aided by the appropriate inter-governmental
sc::;encies.
20.

The Con:mittee is conscious of its position in the United nations family as thecentral forum f,or discussion oi these questions ·t1ith the active co-·operation of thethi ted :taticns cu;encies.

It has re:r,eatedly found that when a scientific problem is

cm ap9ropriate group of experts 5 co-operation; pro_:;ress and g·ooc
relati ::;ns c,Jn:e to exist with a minimum cf fon:r:al co-ordination.

J./!+5~nglish_;:,nnex II
Fage 1,~NNEX II
CCHSENSUS CF OPINION OF 'I'IIB EXPERTS HRTICIPATII:G IN THE
TJN/vmo SEMINJ,R en USE CF VITAL AND HEhLTH STATISTICS FCRGENETIC AND RADIATICIT STUDIES

1.

The participants in the Seminar on Use of Vital and Health Statistics for

Genetic and Radiation Studies have conducted a general and detailed examinationof the current adequacy and future potentialities of civil registration
procedures, as well as of vital and health statistics as a source of data instudies of genetics and of the effects of radiation in human populations.

They

have considered practical suggestions for overcoming present limitations, so as
to rr.eet, in rarticular, the critical needs of hu11an geneticists and radiation
epidemiologists.
2.

The :rarticipants note with satisfaction that co-operation between the official

authorities concerned with registration of vital events and with the collectionof vital and health statistics.• on one side, and the students of human genetics
and radiation epidemiology, on the other, has already been initiated in several
countries and that closer contacts between them are to be ex:rected in the futi.:;.::'e.

3.

In the conviction that we are entering an era in which knowledge of thegenetic endowments of human individuals and populations will lead to new insights
into the health and well-being of n::ankind, it is suggested that contacts between
biological scientists and vital and health statisticians be rraintained andexpanded and that full ad.vantage be taken of this co-operation through frequentand continuing consultations between authorities concerned with the statistics
of civil registrations and biologists on matters of corrmon interest.

4.

The r:articir:ants are aware of the fact that a large part of the duties ofcivil registration authorities is of a legal and administrative nature and thatthe procedures for the collection of vital ste.tistical inforrration were not,and cannot be, rrerely designed to rreet the needs of hurran biologists, but they
are also acutely aware of the fact that any progress in burran biolofical sciences
can have wid8 repercussions in other disciplines, like demoe:raphy, whose importfor the socinl and economic welfare of the population is well known.

I •••,./4528:::nglish
r-nnex II
Fage 2

5.

Frogress towards meeting the needs of human biologists may take the form ofaltering existing procedures which should, of course, be assessed in a context
cf local situations.

They can, however, often be achieved through rather simple,-r;,.;ans, ·,ri tbcut drast,ically changing established systems.

A variety of measures¥ill ce found useful to that effect and scme of them can be outlined in verybroad terms:(a):3upplernenting the information available on routine records by linkage

with other records relating to the same individual;(b)Reconstruction of seg:rr;ents of biological families through record

linkage so as to permit longitudinal studies over a number of generations;(c)Recording of such items of information as are required to identify

consanguineous marriages, in order to rrake possible the assessment of their
2ffects on the survival, health and growth of offspring;( d):::et ting up partial or complete registers of population groups ofgenetic and rredical interest such as twins, people suffering from hereditarydiseases, ccngeni tal rralforrrations, rr.alignancie s;(e)Introduction into vital and health statistics program:rr;es of additional

items of information required for analysis or linkage, as well as special
tabulations as may be needed;(f)Better and more extensive exploitation of data useful to assess

fertility :i;:atterns and differentials;(g)

Facilitating the estirration of doses delivered to patients duringrredical X-ray work, for example by keeping in X-ray departments appropriate
records of norrral practices, types of equipment., etc;(h)Improverrent of basic quality of data by such means as are appropriate,including rerroval of affibiguities in terminology and in the structure of theq_uestions., querying imprecise replies, mating the certifying physicians and otherinformants mere aware of their responsibilities;( l. )Developing a list of pathological conditions of genetic significance,-1tich could 11sefully supplerr:ent the International Classification of Diseases;( .)Taking such initiative as rr;ay be necessary to ease the limitations to'Jthe accessibility of the records for research purposes.

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Fetge 3

6.

However simple, many of the developrrents which can be envisac:ed will require

thoughtful consideration before being adopted.

~[he import of scme of the results

which can be anticipated will be n:ainly limited to the country in which they will
be obtained and therefore r:arallel studies are not to be discouraged.

There n:ay,

however, also be investigations of a general validity and for scn;e of these, inview of their cost, possible duplication should be avoided.

It is therefcre felt

to be useful that the discussions initiated at the Seminar be continued not only
within the various countries out also, en a restricted scale, at the international
level under the aegis of the sponsoring organizations, so as to advise
administrations and research workers of current developr1ents in different
countries, and so enable them to cc-ordinate such activities, with a view tomaking the best possible use of available resources.

7.

The present state of development of hun:an biology requires flexibility of

approach, and the contribution of vital and health statistics to genetic andradiation studies will have to be ,judged en results which may not err:erge
irrmediately.

Sorre of the possible approaches will prove rrore fruitful thanothers, but increasing knowledge in these fields is bound to be of the greatest
social benefit.

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EnglishAnnex III
Page 1;,NNEX III
FIFA EC IAL IMFLICA 'l'IClTS
1.

1',t the tirr.e of adoption of the decisions recorded in paragraph 14 of thepresent report) the Corr.mittee was informed that the holding of its ninth session
at the European Gffice of the United Nations would require an additional
expenditure approximating $5,800, but that the precise figure would depend on
the detailed pattern of conferences; while tbe extension of its tenth session

by one week, should this becorr.e necessary, would cost $2,6;25.
2.

At the tin;e of adoption of the decision recorded in paragraph 19 of thepresent report, the Corrmittee was inforK~d that consultant services amounting to
one and a half man-years of scientific effort would require an additional
expenditure of $15,0CO.