Review of radium hazards and regulation of radium in industry

Abstract

Radium usage in the United States peaked in the late 1930's and early 1940's, much of it centered in New York, in both medical applications for cancer therapy and industrial applications mainly for self-luminous paints and static elimination. While the production of radium shifted from American to Europe after 1920, the importation of radium salts and their incorporation into products peaked during the World War II years and continued by some U.S. firms into the 1970's. New York State Department of Labor (NYS DOL), Division of Industrial Hygiene, investigated radium facilities in the 1940's to evaluate radium hazards and make recommendations for worker protection, but these were not always followed by industry. In December 1955, Industrial Code Rule 38 was promulgated which set limits for external doses and air concentrations and required That all radiation facilities be registered with the Departent. Many firms, with operations dating back to the 1930's, had major difficulties in revamping their operations to achieve compliance with these new standards. This paper will review NYS DOL investigations and enforcement activities toward Code compliance of three major radium corporations which were engaged in radium refining, reclamation, source manufacture, and radium dial painting. The summary includes review of worker dosimetry, external exposures, and air concentration data compiled from reports of on-site inspections and will briefly review several involving alleged radiation injury.