Re: [CPEO-MEF] Scientists say tungsten a promising clue to leukemia cluster

[petestrauss1@attbi.com]

Susan:

I'll not get into another debate with you about depleted uranium (DU).
Nevertheless, there has been a great deal of information released recently
that implicates DU as a causative factor in disease. Lead from bullets, in
the right environment, has been known to contaminate surface water and
groundwater.  We all know the seriousness of ingesting lead. The idea of
"green bullets" is for training and practice purposes.  I have not seen
their use proposed for actual combat.

Peter Strauss
----- Original Message -----
From: <loc@icx.net>
To: "cpeo-military" <cpeo-military@igc.topica.com>
Sent: Tuesday, February 11, 2003 8:56 AM
Subject: RE: [CPEO-MEF] Scientists say tungsten a promising clue to leukemia
cluster


> It's always worthwhile to delve into the facts about a substance when
> attempting to evaluate news reports such as the one that began this
> thread.
>
> I had a look at the Material Safety Data Sheet for tungsten from the
> following website: http://www.hummelcroton.com/w_m.html.
>
> - Acute Health & Toxic Effects - Irritating to the skin and eyes on
> contact. Inhalation will cause irritation to the lungs and mucus
> membrane. Irritation to the eyes will cause watering and redness.
> Reddening, scaling, and itching are characteristics of skin
> inflammation. Follow safe industrial hygiene practices and always wear
> protective equipment when handling this compound.
>
> - Chronic Health & Toxic Effects: This product has no known chronic
> effects. Repeated or prolong exposure to this compound is not known to
> aggravate medical conditions.
>
> - Carcinogenicity: This product is not listed by NTP, IARC or regulated
> as a Carcinogen by OSHA.
>
> - Routes of Exposure: Eye contact. Ingestion. Inhalation. Skin contact.
>
> - Toxicity Data: Ipr-Rat LD50: 5 gm/kg [ipr=intraperitoneal, LD50 is the
> dose required to cause 50% of the rats to die]
>
> Since tungsten has never been linked to cancer, it's unlikely to be the
> cause of a leukemia cluster.  The original article also mentioned
> arsenic, which is a known carcinogen, but not known to cause leukemia.
> Remember "cancer" is a host of different diseases with different causes
> (some genetic, some viral, and some environmental).  The usual
> explanation for cancer clusters is random chance--some areas are going
> to be higher than average and some areas lower, because that's the
> nature of statistical distribution.  This doesn't mean that authorities
> shouldn't investigate clusters of cancers that can be caused by the same
> agent, but the results are typically indeterminate.
>
> Regarding the weapons issue mentioned by Tom Magness:
>
> Some interesting comparisons:
>   Density of tungsten silicide 9.4 g/cc
>   Density of lead 11.3 g/cc
>   Density of uranium 19 g/cc
> Recall that momentum (an important component of penetrating power)
> equals mass times velocity.
>
> Now, what weapon do you want your child/sibling/spouse/parent/neighbor
> to have in his or her arsenal as a tank-stopper?  War will be an
> environmental disaster, no matter what metal we use in our ammunition.
> It's foolish to risk lives of our military personnel and outcomes of
> battles over worries of future contamination, especially when there are
> no proved cause-and-effect links of depleted uranium to Gulf War
> Syndrome or health effects in the battlefield areas (there are many
> different toxic substances released during battle).  It's better to
> effectively remove the need for warfare through appropriate foreign
> policy and diplomatic efforts, but when you go in to fight, fight to
> win.
>
> The opinions expressed are my own.
>
> Susan Gawarecki
> --
> .....................................................
> Susan L. Gawarecki, Ph.D., Executive Director
> Oak Ridge Reservation Local Oversight Committee
> 102 Robertsville Road, Suite B, Oak Ridge, TN 37830
> Toll free 888-770-3073 ~ www.local-oversight.org
> .....................................................
>
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