Letters Received to Arthur Roeder [A. Roeder], July 14, 1924

COPY HARVARD UNIVERSITY School of Public Health 55 Van Dyke Street, Boston, Mass. July 14,1924. Mr. Arthur Roder, United States Radium Corporation, 30 Church St., N.Y.C. My dear Mr. Roeder: Inspection of the work done with our animals leads me to feel that further delay in reporting upon them will zive us no more information. On May 13th, we gave intratracheal injections of luminous zine sulphide to one cat and of "Undark" to three cats. The reason for this method of administration is because it assures a prompter and more efficient absorption of the substance used, and is, furthermore, similar to one of the rontes by which your employees take in these substances. In no case did we gain evidence of any local damage to the lungs. After one to four weeks time we sacrificed the animals, and found no noteworthy abnormalities at autopsy. Upon chemical analysis, the bones of the cats receiving "Undark" contained large amounts of radium -- more than we could obtaine from the lungs, the site of the original deposition, or from all the rest of the body. Our apparatus does not permit the giving of a quantitative figure on this point, but it has established very definitely that inhal ed "Undark" is removed from the lungs and the radium carried by it is deposited in bone. In both the luminous zinc,sulphide and "Undark" animals the skeleton contained some zinc, deposited apparently as a double phosphate in the compact bone, and being analogous in this particular to lead and a number of other heavy metals, though probably less permanent. On perusual of our report, you will note that we cited abundant evidence from the literature to the effect that intravenously or subcutaneously injected radium preparations deposited radiun in large amounts in bone. We felt it desirable to find out whether radium introduced by inhalation, as "Undark", is deposited in the same way. This has been definitely established by these experiments. To you, I suppose, they will seem unnecessary, but we feel that they bring out in rather a bold relief the fact that radium administered as it slowly is to your employees, reaches bone. You will ask why, if we have done this, we have not gone on to the question of necrosis production, thereby clinching matters. If this phase of the situation could be established experimentally, it would require a considerable series of antimals dosed over a long period of time in several diffemt ways, and would necessitate a series of experiments which would be both extensive and expensive. We have not, therefore, felt justified in entering such a campaign nor do we feel that it is necessary in relation to the problem offered by your plant in Orange. I hope that some time or other you will drop in on us here in Boston, and trust you will feel at entire liberty to turn any one over to me whom you may wish to have given an account of our views on the whole matter. I feel very sure, myself, that you can permanently get rid of the trouble which has pursued you at Orange if you make use of intelligent medical supervision, coupled with other precautionary measures we have suggested. It is my opinion that under such a regine you cab feel confident that you have taken adequate measures to end your own difficulties and to safeguard the health of your employees. Very sincerely yours, (signed) Cecil K. Drinker, M.D.