A Chornobyl solidarity call (06/23/96)

A Chornobyl solidarity call

Following is the text of an appeal issued by the Ukrainian Medical Association of North America.

On the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the Chornobyl accident, the Ukrainian American community has been called to express its concerns in many ways. This call is about the need for all of us to support an international event that will bring together thousands of human geneticists who are ideally equipped to analyze and contribute approaches that may ameliorate the negative implications of the accident.

Chornobyl transcends an ecological disaster; it is a tragedy with elements that have exposed the raw edges of politics and ethics. Furthermore, Chornobyl has been very detrimental in the sphere of biological integrity of Ukraine and has opened sharp concerns about its human health prospects. For many, the handling of the Chornobyl accident during the past decade has demonstrated a rather abysmal failure by bureaucratized agencies to grasp the dimensions of the event. Some even propose now that the Chornobyl tragedy requires new approaches where philosophers should play a greater role than politicians.

The mass media and in some instances the scientific community have emphasized that the ionizing radiation effects from Chornobyl on human health may be too negligible to be measurable under current circumstances, by available methods and resources. This, in turn, has confused the public. Statements are often made that scientific studies fail to show evidence of "attributable or measurable effects" stemming from Chornobyl. Frequently this is construed as being equivalent to "a safe radiation dose."

But, in truth, the scientific fact that ionizing radiation causes genetic mutations and that these can result in cancer, birth defects and other disorders is indisputable. Much energy is often expended in arguments that Chornobyl's ill effects will afflict possibly 50,000, 500,000 or 500 million, as if statistics represent a key question. Statistics are inimical to ethics. Death is death, a life handicapped by birth defects is a burden.

Another frequent extrapolation is that "non-measurable effects" are equivalent to "no effects." This is the same as to say that the death of 50,000 people scattered across Europe and across 10 years is inherently different if they die under more detectable circumstances. It is beyond dispute that ionizing radiation is an undesirable element in our environment because it threatens the stability of the genome, human and non-human alike. Genetic mutations are of consequence to current and future generations.

It is also beyond dispute that the distressed populations are deeply concerned and that the birth rate in afflicted areas has plummeted. In such a framework, the value of scientific investigations is high, regardless whether results are negative and therefore rewarding to scientists, or positive and therefore rewarding to distressed populations. Scientific facts are necessary to anchor rational and constructive dialogues between the public and its representatives. Without facts, human welfare and dignity can easily be diminished.

The Ukrainian Medical Association of North America is endorsing a special symposium, "Chornobyl: Implications of a Decade," organized by Dr. Wladimir Werteleckyj to take place concurrently with the International Congress of Human Genetics to be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on August 24. Most of the scientific evidence about ionizing radiation effects on human health stem from investigations of the survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs, which represented an acute radiation exposure. Extrapolations from such studies may or may not apply to Chornobyl. It is useful to underscore that Chornobyl represents an amount of radiation at least 200 times greater than was released from the Hiroshima or Nagasaki bombs. Also, in contrast to Hiroshima-Nagasaki, which were acute high-dose exposures, Chornobyl poses dilemmas about low-dose chronic radiation exposures. The area effected by Chornobyl stretches far away from Ukraine.

The magnitude of the disaster is underscored also by recent concerns that two-thirds of the drinking water in Ukraine may be endangered by potential plutonium contamination, one of the most lethal radioactive agents known. While initially Western scientists doubted reports about an epidemic of childhood thyroid cancer primarily because it was "too early after the accident," now, there is some scientific consternation because "there are too many cases." Some believe the increase in cases may be due to a pre-existing iodine deficiency among those exposed, while others suspect that the estimates of the amount of radiation released from Chornobyl may have been significantly understated. In any event, there is no doubt that the affected populations are profoundly distressed and have strong doubts about their future. The birth rate has plummeted and self-perceptions of health status are quite low.

In April of this year, a disturbing report in the prestigious journal Nature caused further bewilderment among international scientists, as well as those in Ukraine. The article, amply highlighted in the press (e.g., The New York Times, April 25), reported that genetic mutations in children of persons exposed to Chornobyl are significantly increased. Should this be confirmed, the implication will be that future generations of Ukrainian children may be burdened by birth defects and other genetic mutation effects.

The special symposium in Brazil will provide a forum for a serious, scientific and balanced discussion of the past and prospective studies that may clarify the current debate. The program also aims to encourage independent investigators to undertake a greater role and to invite them to join the ranks of investigators sponsored by official agencies. Human and medical geneticists are particularly well equipped to study ionizing radiation effects on DNA, its stability and the implications of genetic mutations to current and future generations.

The program calls for a review by Dr. Oleg Z. Hnateiko, M.D., Ph.D., the director of the Lviv Scientific Institute of Pediatrics and Hereditary Pathology and also the head of the Ukrainian Human and Medical Genetics Society. Other Ukrainian experts have been invited as participants. The keynote speaker will be Dr. James Neel, M.D., Ph.D., a recognized world authority in human genetics, medical genetics and a recipient of distinguished awards in his field. Soon after Hiroshima-Nagasaki, Dr. Neel initiated and directed a host of studies aimed at clarifying the medical and genetic effects of ionizing radiation. A panel discussion by international experts will expand the vistas presented by reviewers, and the symposium will close with a discussion open to all participants.

The symposium is co-sponsored by the Ibero-American Society of Human Genetics, headed by Dr. Carlos Salinas, who has invited distinguished scientists from Latin America to become participants. There is considerable concern in the developing world about sources of ionizing radiation and environmental degradation in general.

We call on the Ukrainian community, particularly its business leadership, to make contributions that are necessary to ensure participation by Ukrainian experts. Interactions of Ukrainian experts with thousands of international geneticists attending the congress is one of the most effective ways to uphold and uplift the international and scientific linkages of Ukraine as a newly independent state.

Ukrainian Medical Association of North America

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