Intended for healthcare professionals

News

WHO suppressed evidence on effects of depleted uranium, expert says

BMJ 2006; 333 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.39027.603264.DB (Published 09 November 2006) Cite this as: BMJ 2006;333:990
  1. Owen Dyer
  1. 1London

A World Health Organization paper on the risks to health from munitions that use depleted uranium has been called into question by a member of the editorial team that produced the report. Keith Baverstock, who worked as a WHO radiation expert, claims that research indicating a carcinogenic effect was deliberately suppressed.

Dr Baverstock said that he tried to submit research from the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute of the US Department of Defense that found evidence of genotoxicity from depleted uranium particles in the body.

But Mike Repacholi, the WHO scientist who oversaw the production of the 2001 report, Health Effects of Depleted Uranium, refused to include any mention of the research in the final report. …

View Full Text

Log in

Log in through your institution

Subscribe

* For online subscription