Mortality of Veteran Participants in the CROSSROADS Nuclear Test

In 1946, approximately 40,000 U.S. military personnel participated in Operation CROSSROADS, an atmospheric nuclear test that took place at Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands. Congress passed a law directing the Veterans Administration to determine whether there were any long-term adverse health effects associated with exposure to ionizing radiation from the detonation of nuclear devices. This book contains the results of an extensive epidemiological study of the mortality of participants compared with a similar group of nonparticipants. Topics of discussion include a breakdown of the study rationale; an overview of other studies of veteran participants in nuclear tests; and descriptions of Operation CROSSROADS, data sources for the study, participant and comparison cohorts, exposure details, mortality ascertainment, and findings and conclusions.

Table of Contents

• Front Matter
• Summary
• Study Rationale and Overview
• Other Studies of the Human Health Effects of Radiation Exposure
• Epidemiology Primer
• Description of Operation Crossroads
• Data Sources for the Crossroads Study
• The Participant Cohort
• The Comparison Cohort
• Exposure Definition, Measurement, and Verification
• Mortality Ascertainment
• Characterization of the Cohorts and Analysis Plan
• Findings and Discussion
• Conclusions
• References
• Appendix A: National Association of Atomic Veterans (NAAV) Medical Survey
• Appendix B: Particpant Description (DNA memorandum dated July 11, 1994)
• Appendix C: Standardized Mortality Ratios
• Appendix D: Radiation Doses for CROSSROADS Participants and Exposure Surrogate Groups
• Appendix E: Verification of Completeness and Accuracy of the participant Roster
• Appendix F: Verification of Completeness and Accuracy of Mortality Ascertainment
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