The Miraculous Substance Of Radium Girls

Amelia Maggia was 21 when she went to work at the U.S Radium Corporation factory. She worked at the factory for four years before she had to quit, due to health problems. She had gradually contracted symptoms such as anemia, joint pains, and weight loss. A few months later, on September 12, 1922, at the age of 25, she died. Her death certificate read “ulcerative stomachitis.” But when four other dial-painters died in the following years, and as many more, including Amelia’s two sisters, contracted similar symptoms of anemia, tumors, bone damage, and weight loss, medical examiner Harrison Martland decided to investigate. In 1927, he asked Charles Norris and Alexander Gettler to assist him to find an experiment that would help prove his theory that radium was the killer. What they discovered would forever change the way the world handled

In the early 1900’s, the discovery of a luminescent material, radium, arrived on the scene to the delight of a fascinated and eager public. At first, it seemed to be a miracle remedy, not just harmless but even beneficial. However, when a multitude of watch dial painters were exposed to this substance on an extremely consistent basis, the negative effects began bubbling to the surface. These “Radium Girls” were unknowingly consuming a potentially lethal substance and would be the first victims of radium poisoning and radioactivity. Not many people knew about the dangers of radioactive substances or radium poisoning and many others had made judgements that were clouded by the perfection of the glowing sensation. In spite of this, the horrific afflictions that the Radium Girls endured helped shift the public perspective of radium from “wonder drug” to “pitiless poison” and started the country on a path to regulating the handling of radioactive

From surgery to radium exposure to such extremes as radiation therapy, as doctors’ knowledge of the varying types of cancer, and the expansion of medical research regarding cancer has changed, so has the preferred method of treatment. Doctors and researchers dedicated to studying cancer have led to a greater understanding of cancer development; consequently the development of treatments and cures that are more effective, less harmful, have fewer side effects, and in some cases serve to prevent the spread of cancer.

Doctors had been using radiation to destroy cancerous cells since the unfolding of X-rays and radium in the 1890s, but both techniques had their own issues. X-ray machines were complicated to make use of, and radium implanted near tumors. In addition, X-rays weren’t strong enough to be entirely effective, and as for both of them, they were quite expensive.

The city of Waukesha was “pleased to report” that their water tested negative for everything but Radium and Gross Alpha. Radium is element number 88 on the periodic table and from the name, you can guess that this element is highly radioactive and can be very harmful to the human body. For starters, if radium is ingested and absorbed into the cells and tissues, it can and will start to deteriorate the surrounding tissues. Specifically, radium may cause problems in the immune system including anemia. Radium can cause cataracts and fractured teeth (from breaking down tissue, including bone tissue). High levels of radium have also been known to cause an increased risk in bone, liver, and breast cancers. Gross Alpha is a type of radiation that is released when any naturally occurring radioactive element changes to produce a “decay product”, such as radium. These decay products are formed after billions of years. Alpha radiation is everywhere, in our soil, air, and in our water. This is because or earth’s bedrock consists of varying amounts of radioactive elements. The alpha radiation also varies in our water, due to the water in deep aquifers or wells touching the bedrock; the water may contain the same or less than the same amount of elemental decay. Alpha radiation in drinking / ground water can be in the form of dissolved minerals, or as a gas

Scientists had warned other scientists about the effects of the radiation on humans, but they ignored the forewarnings and still conducted the experiments. The people surrounding the plants took radiation in the worst and most inhumane way possible. Internal dosage of radiation is the most threatening. When a person inhales or swallows the radiation, the atoms can become part of the body, since some of the particles are chemically similar to the nutrients that the body stores. Once a part of the body, the particles emit point-blank radiation (76, Cheney).

Many of the deaths were from the initial blast or burns, but (as mentioned) many people died from radiation sickness. They suffered nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever and weakness. People also had internal bleeding and bled from their mouths, throats and other places in their bodies.

Over the next several years, (during the 1920s) many of the factory workers became very ill and exhibited symptoms such as severe anemia, extreme joint pain, and disintegrating jaws (Carter, 2007, p. 2). Radium is an incredibly unstable element, and thus it has a very short half-life. A half-life is the time it takes for half the original amount of the element to decay to another element, and because Radium-226 (its most common isotope) has a half life of only 1600 years, it is highly radioactive . Additionally, radium’s chemical properties resemble those of calcium, so when the young factory workers ingested the element, it made its way into their bones, where it would then decay and release alpha particles (large particles emitted from helium atoms), gamma rays (high speed light radiation) and beta particles (fast moving electrons) into nearby bones (Quigley, 2002). This ultimately caused extreme bone decay, as well as bone cancers in many instances. Because of this, radium can be classified as a carcinogen. Although alpha particles are not strong enough to penetrate flimsy substances such as paper, they are dangerous when ingested because tissue inside the body can receive high levels of ionizing radiation. As this reaction is taking place, alpha particles are being emitted as a helium atom gains two new protons (thus increasing its atomic number), and the atom’s mass subsequently increases by

There are many ways for cancer to get in the body, like exposure to uranium and oxidative stress. [8]. When the mechanisms of the body loose the protein Glutathione it leads to making oxygen free radical neutral. Two of the most important proteins in the body are glutathione (GSH) and superoxide dismutase (SOD). Glutathione (GSH) works as an antioxidant [9]. Also, glutathione (GSH) has an important job that removes toxic metals out of the body because glutathione (GSH) has a sulphydryl group. This group strongly binds with toxic metals, effectively [3]. When uranium enters the body, it will reduce glutathione (GSH). When there is a reduction of glutathione (GSH), it leads to an increase of the

Until the early 1900's, scientists used several methods of measurement in their efforts to determine the age of the Earth. They studied sedimentation and erosion, stratification (with fossil evidence), measured the salinity of the oceans, and used thermodynamics to determine loss of heat since the Earth's beginning. Each of these approaches yielded estimates that the Earth was anywhere from 24 to 100 million years old.

For the plutonium, polonium and uranium experiments the researchers wanted to protect the people working on nuclear weapons. They used sick patients to experiment on, and they collected data from those experiments to develop a safer and healthier environment for the workers. The total-body irradiation (TBI) experiments the government was gathering information to use and develop nuclear weapons. The radioisotope experiments involved plutonium injections, and the biomedical research that was conducted was to further the medicine advancements (“OSTI,” 1995).

It is not until recently that people have become dependent on this element, and not necessarily for the good of it, and the world. There is an obsession with uranium because of its unique properties. Uranium is extremely powerful because of its radioactive properties and unstable nuclei, especially that of Uranium-235. It is able to break down and release high frequency radiation through alpha and beta decay. It is because of these characteristics that Uranium has such a craze on the population of the world (Cox, 1995; Scerri, 2007). The properties of uranium allow people to create powerful plants to produce electricity, and weapons strong enough to destroy the world.

There are many advantages and disadvantages to the use of radioactive elements in medicines. Some advantages include the fact that

Ionizing radiation exposure is a well known risk factor that is not only unique to ALL but to many other cancers. Fetus exposure to radiation in the early stages of development may increase risk of ALL in the exposed child however the magnitude of the risk is unknown. Ionizing radiation can affect a child at all stages of development from preconception, pregnancy and postnataly. Radiation can come in many forms for example radiation on a fetus can occur via x-ray or CT scan, therefore most physicinas avoid having pregnant women take these diagnostic test under most circumstances (American Cancer Society). There have been studies that suggest paternal ionizing radiaton exposure may also play a role in the risk of ALL in offspring. One such study was conducted in the United Kingdom and examined children living in Sellafield located near a powerplant and fathers working at the

A total body exposure of one hundred roentgens of radiation will cause radiation sickness. Although certain medical devices will give you exposure to radiation, the grays of radiation are miniscule and will not cause radiation sickness. There are a few sources that can lead to a high enough exposure of roentgens of radiation. One of these sources involves accidents or attacks involving nuclear facilities. The other has to do with accidents or being the target of radioactive or nuclear weapons and devices, this includes the use of a conventional explosive device that disperses radioactive material, known as a dirty bomb.