I am grateful to all who posted comments on this story. It did me good to see/hear so much vigilance and desire for change.
I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's Disease a few years ago. I have had a mass on my thyroid, and after a series of FNAs (fine needle aspirations), I was told by an ENT that I should have my thyroid removed because of suspicious-looking cells that he believed were cancerous but couldn't determine the nature of with certainty except in autopsy. After an initial reaction, I threw myself into researching the type of cell found in the latest FNA, the likelihood of a malignancy, and the costs, procedure and effects of a thyroidectomy.
Among the many things I learned, such as that fewer than one percent of the thyroid nodules that add the kind of cell mine has are cancerous, I discovered iodine and began the search for an iodine-literate doctor. I would highly suggest that anyone who is not eating kelp, or any other iodine-saturated foods, on a daily basis look into iodine. It is believed 98% of us are iodine deficient, and this has a number of ramifications in terms of human health.
And, I would suggest that those of us who are already wary of the hideous, pervasive and wasteful nightmare that has been unleashed on this planet and those who have experienced one or more environmentally-related sicknesses continue the fight for detoxified air, water and soil. It does matter.
Quote:
Originally Posted by *Anya*
As one who had my thyroid removed due to cancer (passed 10-year mark now, so considered cured) I know what to expect in Japan (and perhaps farther away) following this accident. This is a true tragedy. The aftereffects will be felt for years, for everyone.
The US also has caused its fair share of thyroid cancers due to all of the above ground testing that took place in the 1940’s and 1950’s. Obviously, this subject is near and dear to my heart and one I follow fairly regularly.
The US and above ground nuclear weapons testing
The first above-ground nuclear weapon test was conducted by the U.S. in southeastern New Mexico on July 16, 1945. Between 1945 and 1963, hundreds of above-ground blasts took place around the world. The number and size (yield) of blasts increased, particularly in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Following the signing of the Limited Test Ban Treaty of 1963 by the U.S., U.S.S.R., and Great Britain, most above-ground blasts ceased. The ambient radiation monitoring systems in place at the time recorded sharp increases in atmospheric radiation as the number and size of the blasts increased (Some above-ground weapons testing by other countries continued until 1980.)
NIH and the Individual Dose and Risk Calculator for Nevada Test Site fallout
This calculator estimates the radiation dose from I-131 absorbed by your thyroid gland from nuclear tests conducted at the Nevada Test Site (NTS). The calculator estimates your risk of thyroid cancer from this exposure. This calculator also provides an estimate of probability of causation/assigned share (PC/AS) for individuals who have been diagnosed with thyroid cancer.
Testing was conducted at the NTS from 1951 through 1992. However, only the above-ground tests conducted from 1951 through 1962, and some of the underground tests conducted from 1961 through 1970, are included in this calculator.
https://ntsi131.nci.nih.gov/
Chernobyl and Thyroid cancer
"For the last two decades, attention has been focused on investigating the association between exposure caused by radionuclides released in the Chernobyl accident and late effects, in particular thyroid cancer in children. Doses to the thyroid received in the first few months after the accident were particularly high in those who were children and adolescents at the time in Belarus, Ukraine and the most affected Russian regions and drank milk with high levels of radioactive iodine. By 2005, more than 6,000 thyroid cancer cases had been diagnosed in this group, and it is most likely that a large fraction of these thyroid cancers is attributable to radioiodine intake. It is expected that the increase in thyroid cancer incidence due to the Chernobyl accident will continue for many more years, although the long-term increase is difficult to quantify precisely."
http://www.unscear.org/unscear/en/chernobyl.html |