Evening star., 1948-12-03
stors, Men and Atoms
Obscure Vitumin Nav Cut
Atomic Bomb Ray Deaths

Atomic Bomb Ray Deaths
Scientists Use Lemon Peel Substance
In New Radiation Experiments
By Thomas X. Henry
An obscure vitamin reduces by half the death
rate from total body radiation-the major
effect Of an atomic bomb after the damage
directly due to its explosion to ex-
periments with guinea pigs just reported to the
American Association for the Advancement Of
Science.
This substance is purified Vitamin P, obtained
from lemons. similar material is contained
in orange peel, buckwheat and tobacco. The
buckwheat principle, known as rutin, has been
used In medicine for several years.
The major effect of the vitamin is to reduce
the fragility Of the blood capillaries. This
weakness is greatly increased by radiation
either from X-rays or the gamma rays which
come with a bomb explosion. In few days
the body Is filled with tiny hemorrhages and
victims soon die.
The experiments reported were carried out
by DR.. william G. Clark and his associates at
the Scripps Metabolic Clinic at La Jolla, Calf,
under a grant from the Public Health Service.
Inc animals were given VI IAAo
new vitamin in drinking water for a week.
Then they we're subjected to X-ray radiation
which ordinarily would have been 100 per cent
fatal. Then the vitamin treatment was con.
tinued as long as the subjects lived
1t was found that only little more than
half the treated guinea pigs died. Recovery
for those who survived was complete within 30
days. 1t Is proposed to continue to expert
ment with other animals and then study the
chemical structure of the Vitamin molecule
in the hope of synthesizing an even more
potent substance.
There is some question whether the vitamin
would have much value If given only after an
atomic bomb attack. 1t might be useful
only If given preventively for some time in
advance. The use Of rutin, isolated by Agri-
culture Department chemists from buck.
wheat during the war has been advocated as
treatment for total body radiation for some
time, but its value appears due 10 the fact
that it contains the new vitamin.
The finding reported from the California
laboratory is Of particular significance as one
of the very few clues possessed by medical
science for treatment Of a condition which was
essentially unknown before the bombing of the
japanese cities.
radioactive isotopes in the treatment of cancer
is about to be explored-use of exploding atoms
whose nfetimes are measured In minutes and
seconds.
They could be given-either by mouth or by
direct injection into the cancer itself-in ex.
tremely heavy doses. Because they would be-
come inert so quickly, there would be no
danger of lasting side-effects which eventually
would be fatal Their long lifetimes Of activity
are an apparently insuperable objection to the
use of many of the isotopes now available for
human treatment.
The difficulty with the short-lived isotopes
is that they must be administered the moment
they are formed. There is no possibility OF
transporting them any distance at all. For
this reason, it Is announced by DR.. Shields
Warren of the Atomic Energy Commission, it
now is planned to make hospital beds avail
able at the great uranium piles where the
isotopes are manufactured. They can be used
as soon as they are created by bombardment.
No Solution As Yet.
There Is as yet no clinical evidence DR..
Warren says, that the treatments will be Of
any value They will allow, however an enor-
mously greater intensity of radiation that
could be concentrated for few minutes This
is quite strictly limited in cases of isotopes
period. Their half hves-the period in which
half of any given number of atoms will ex-
plode-often are measured in years. All this
time they are pouring out cell-killing radia-
tions all around them.
Up to now, use Of the newly created radioac-
tive isotopes in treating cancer, which at first
seemed to hold high promise, has been sone-
what disappointing and few possibilities re.
main to be explored. OF these, use Of short.
lived elements is the most promising.
ION the basis of preliminary experiment"
Dr. Warren says, "it appears as though the
sphere of usefulness of radioactive isotopes in
treatment of cancer will be limited to few
elements and few types of malignant dis.
cases. So far, no rabbit has been pulled out
O: the hat, no solution of the problem OF selec-
tive treatment Of benign or malignant neo-
plastic disease has been reached"