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    "label": "Letters Received to Mr. Roeder [A. Roeder], October 9, 1925",
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    "id": "75720217",
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    "title": "Letters Received to Mr. Roeder [A. Roeder], October 9, 1925",
    "citationUrl": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75720217",
    "collections": [
        "Safety Light Collection",
        "Records Related to Radium Dial Painters"
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    "seq": 3,
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    "type": "document",
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    "ocrText": "Cohmbia University\nCollege of Physicians and Surgeons\nEPIDEMIOLOGY\n437 WEST 59TH STREET, NEW YORK\nINDUSTRIAL HYGIENE\nPUBLIC HEALTH ADMINISTRATION\nINSTITUTE OF PUBLIC HEALTH\nSANITARY SCIENCE\nOct 9 I925\nMr Roeder,\nU.S. Radium Corporation,\nNew York City, N.Y.\nDear Mr Roeder;\nDr. Martland's paper last night was very interesting but it was far from\nbeing neutral. He expressed the opinion that from the data that he has gathered\nit is criminal to use mesthorium intravenously. There is no doubt from the recep-\nthat the paper received at the meeting as to the effect on any jury. Dr Martland\nhas promised to send me a copy of this paper without waiting for its publication.\nI think your lawyers should get a copy as soon as you can so we can have a time to\ndigest it. He presentation last evening was very rapid and many points of importance\nsimply mentioned.\nHowever one can readily see how the other side is building up their case.\nThey are placing all the emphasis on the fact that you use mesothorium in your ma-\nterial and that this is far more dangerous that radium. It seems to me that you\nshould get Dr. McCoy to express his opinion on this matter and to collect all data\nas to the use of mesothorium in internal injections both in this country and Europe.\nIn other words you must be prepared to prove in Court that it is not an extremely\ntoxic material as compared with radium.\nThe question of elimination and absorption is very important. Dr Martland has\nhad the advantage in being in a position where he could study two or three cases.\nHe has taken these cases and demonstrated the presence of radio-active material in\nthe body. He also has examined the expired air with positive results. Dr Hofmann's\nposition and his is that once the mesothorium is taken into the body it is not elim-\ninated but remains there constantly acting on the blood forming agents. They put em-\nphasis on the fact that the time element is the important factor and that the serious\ncondition does not arise often for three or four years after the exposure.\nThe blood of Miss Carlo as shown fron his analysis does not indicate a diabetic\ncondition.\nIn order to be able to answer these questions we will have to examine the\nexcreta of persons working in the plant itself, girls who have been and are no paint-\ning dials, and then from girls who have not been in the plant for several years.\nWe should also get a specimen of Miss Carlo's stools from the hospital if possible.\nYour doctor or the insurance doctor perhaps can get such a sample from the hospital.\nIn addition to getting the excreta from these girls we should make a test to see if\ntheir bodies show any signs of radio-active material or not. Their expired air must\nalso be tested. I consider all of this data very important especially if what Dr.\nMartland claims to have found. We can make this examination at my house if we can set\nup your instruments there so as avoid any contamination from the factory. I think\nyou should take this matter up with Mr Vieldt and have him get four or five girls\nwho are friendly to the company but have not worked in your plant for at least two\nyears. I firmly feel that if the matter is put up to them in the right spirit we can\nget them to do it for us. Of course there will be no trouble in getting the em-\nployees in your plant to assist us in this matter.\nThis part of the study should be started at the earliest possible moment for\nwe never know what we are going to run into. If possible I wish you would take it up\nwith Mr Barker and Mr Viedt.\nCohmbia University\nCollege of Physicians and Surgeons\nEPIDEMIOLOGY\n437 WEST 59TH STREET, NEW YORK\nINDUSTRIAL HYGIENE\nPUBLIC HEALTH ADMINISTRATION\nINSTITUTE OF PUBLIC HEALTH\nSANITARY SCIENCE\nIfvyou will send me about ten grams more of your material I would like to\nmake some absorption tests.\nYours truly\nR.redench B. Thin\nFrederick B. Flinn"
}