Document bOgOjB0dG0rk7aOaLza805gwk

14 THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, Wednesday, Oct. 2, .1974 Health Hazards: Vinyl-Chloride Risk Was Known i V., - nj? By Many People Even Before the First Deaths 1, ' vM --------- -------------i--:--;-------------n-.'tfy foalmued From First l`ugt> about an abnormally high number of Good sels, leading to degeneration of the bones at such groups as the National Institute (or Oc rich workers who had liver disease. When the tips of the fingers and toes In those ex cupational Safety ami Health, and the he heard that Mr. Parks had died, he re-, posed to high levels of the .monomer. (Emis American Chemical Society, This no-delect- calls, he asked to see the autopsy report. sions of vinyl chloride are generally lower able limit would have constant, not average, ft was in August 1973 that Dr. Creech at plants where the monomer, or gas, ta: adhcnuice to one-part-pcr million levels. learned that Mr. Parks had died the pre made, since the process Is. less complex,: Therefore, it seems certain that the argu vious March of angiosarcoma of the Uver. ' and there is less change (or leaks thsn at ment won't abate. ,, The doctor says he then realized that some the inlymerizalion plants; none at the re; As the controversy continues, It Is reveal thing was seriously wrong, since another ported angiosarcoma cases in this country ing to examine how the link between vinyl Goodrich PVC worker, a private patient of has occurred among workers making vinyl- chloride and cancer was established. If Dr, Creech, had succumbed to' the s^me chloride monomer, and only one of the 10 nothing else, such an examination points out type of cancer In 1971. Dr. Creech says he deaths In Europe was in a monomer plant, I. the grave weaknesses of the present system knew that Uver angiosarcoma Is exceedingly In early 1967, the Manufacturing Chem-. - or lack thereof`-of protecting workers and rare and that two esses among such a small lata Association arranged with the Univer others from industrial hazards. plant imputation was abnormal, tin fact, sity of Michigan to study acroosteolysis The judgment is made in hindsight, but medical men estimate that fewer than 30 among vinyl-chloride workers, particularly the history of vinyl chloride shows that evi cases occur each year In the U.S., striking those who cleuned the reactor vessels and dence of its toxicity was often Ignored. only one in 900,000 pet-sons. I `' Others who were exposed to large concentra What's more, the chemical companies Dr. Creech met with Goodrich's occupa tions of vinyl chloride in the air. The Michi knew, but kept secret for at least six tional health director, Dr. Maurice N. John gan scientists reported in 1970 that although months, the fact, that Italian researchers son, who subsequently decided to ask Taber- they couldn't pinpoint vinyl chloride as the had shown that rats develop tumors, Includ Shaw-Cooper Associates Inc., a Berkeley, cause of the disease, worker exposure to the ing angiosarcoma, when exposed to low Calif., epidemiological-studies concern, to monomer should be eul to 50 parts per mil levels of vinyl chloride monomer. European do a siu-vey of Goodrich deuth records. But lion or below.. '~1 companies, which paid for the animal re the study was hardly needed; on Dec. 19, a Other than Dow, which had already Insti search, knew of these research findings for third PVC worker at the Ixiulaville plant tuted reductions in air level of the mon more than a year before the first human died at the age of 56; he had been at the omer, the rest of the industry in the U.S. ig cases were reported but didn't reduce the plant for 38 years. nored the recommendation. Nor was there exposure of their workers to vinyl chloride. Public Announcement any significant reaction to findings by Euro But Dr. Irving J. Selikoff, an expert on environmental carcinogens, or cancer-caus ing agents, claims that blame shouldn't be On Jan. 33 of this year, Goodrich officials met in Washington with officials of the Na tional Institute for Occupational Safety and pean industry that animals developed ad verse effects from vinyl chloride. This was at least partly because the Europeans down placed at industry's door alone. "We're all a Health and informed them of the three an graded the Importance of some of their find bit responsible," he says "None of us did our homework." Culpability, tie says, should giosarcoma deaths. The following day, Kentucty occuputional-health officials also were ings. For example, Prof. Pier Luigi Viola, a medical director employed in Italy by Sol- be shared by scientists, government agen Informed and Goodrich made its first public vay & Cie., the Belgian chemicals company, cies and labor unions. The case of Earl Parks is Illustrative. Mr. Parks first came to the attention of announcement. .. i. Almost since its first commercial intro duction, there have been reports that vinyl found bone changes in rata exposed to air levels of 30,000 parts per million of vinyl chloride; even more important, he found Goodrich medical people In 1 tld4; when the chloride is toxic ubove certain levels. In that vinyl chloride at that level caused ma company, concerned about the known liver deed, during World War II, vinyl chloride lignant tumors in the ear canals, lungs and toxicity of ethylene dichloride (a chemical was rejected as a surgical anesthetic be bones of rates. 1 .. f- ; ';! from which vinyl chloride is made) tested cause unimulx developed heart irritation Prof.- Viola reported' his findings before ' the Uver function of workers in the Louis when exposed to it. In 1949, Russian scien an International cancer congress in Houston ville plant. tists reported "hepatitislike changes" in In 1970. It was the first reported link be Mr. Parks's readings were abnormal. the livers of 35% of the workers In a small tween cancer, and vinyl chloride. But the Nevertheless, he continued to work at the PVC plant. professor expressed doubt about the purity . same Job. In October 1984, however, he was hospitalised with what was initially dlag. Then, in the late 1950s, research toxocologists at Dow Chemical Co. showed that ani of the vtnyl-chloiide gas he had used and ' slated that the rat cancer findings, because i nosed as a bleeding ulcer. Doctors treated the "ulcer" without surgery, and Mr. Parks was released. He was readmitted to the hospital the fol mals exposed to as few as 100 parts per mil lion of vinyl chloride (or 100 molecules of vinyl chloride In every one million mole cules of air I developed slight Uver damage. they occurred at such high levels of the monomer, had no human implications. j (Prof. Viola subsequently found tumors , In rats exposed to 500 parts per million; but i lowing May, and the decision wux made to Based on Its research, Dow began a pro this fact wasn't revealed until well after the operate. But when the operation was begun, gram in the 1960s to reduce the level of first human angiosarcoma cases were re- , surgeons, Instead of finding an ulcer, found instead that Mr Purus's problem resulted from severe liver damuge, which had caused blood to back up in the portal vein leading into the liver. The surgeons cor rected the vein problem with a shunt and took a sample of liver tissue for analysis. T'n- analyse showed Hint the liver ' ii( n T.iu.ig.d u. 1 Vic-mlcals ' ''N-,- vinyl chloride monomer in the air of its vealed.) - ................ v'* t `fJ plants to below 50 parts per million. The Research Goes On 1 , ji Dow published its results in 1961. But the Based on Prof, Viola's early cancer- find- , rest of the Industry chose to rely on a Y; Inga in rats, Montedison S.p.A., the huge j University study that recommended ..alian chemicals company, In 1970 asked ; parts per million as a safe level. This | Cesare Maltont, a respected researcher at t level had been recommended by the A | the Institute of Oncology in Bologna, Italy, factui-i.,h !l,-. .ni.it * -.-ita.;,i*- s!p.-e lor", , - 4n.-,',a' : ad ,. By O ' cer wasn't mentioned. was a."!, ux.l 'n `i.J2 I,y the ' -*- ! .... tpber I'.'2, i'.'-J -'alum1 '.iai_, he ,.sj tuu.. i ference of Governmental lndusuiai Hygien that 250 parts per million of vinyl chloride I According to testimony at OMHA's hear ists and was given the force of law by i >KMA produced tumors in rats in three parts of ings on vinyl chloride, held last June and In 1971. However, evidence at the UStiA the body; the ear canals, kidneys and the July, Mr. Parks received a total of almost hearings Indicates that this level was regu liver, "ue liver tumors Included angiosar $6,000 in workman's compensation from larly exceeded until this year In many coma. lm. professor Immediately Informed , Goodrich before he died, but only after plants. (The hygienists' group didn't recom his sponsors, ; " " " ' Goodrich protested that his illness couldn't mend lowering the level to 200 parts per The Europeans offered their Information, have resulted from exposure to the chemi mllUon until 1973, four years after Dow con to the Manufacturing Chemists. Association. cal. I cluded from further tests that repeated ex in the U.S,, but only if the Americans guar- It was an alert Louisville doctor wha.flr.3t posure - by workers to vinyl-ehlori<je .more-, --made the conneuUon betwaan uigtoaareoma imefeat ,p#riiu}t.inuu*r1 - and vinyl chloride. Dr. John L. Creech, who or above tor a working lifetime could cause to the'secrecy'condition , "lieuAUse of the tor years has treated workers sent to hint changes in the liver, i ' / vital,importance of learning of, any;,lndlca* , by Goodrich op a fee-per-patient basis, had During the lUtiOs, there were reports of a ttoijg. trom the European research ^With followed Earl Parks's case for some time, disease called acroosteolysis among vtnyk out the delays which could haye respited,, even though ho wasn't treating Mr. Parks, chloride workers. The disease consists,pf iromduplicatlon of effort.!1 v .e>4- 4 i Q*1' hati concerned Skin lesions and changes in thq blood ves- Qn Jan, 30, 1973, a year before the first e'wwinn angiosarcoma cases were reported ,.byJ.S5Sj5o*Irich7uie SiCrOW>iy got1 tiu: r" .Maltoni data. For five months, the secrecy 1 'restrictions were such that government .agencies, PVC workers exposed to vinyl "chloride and even company doctors were hept in the dark. Then,. In the. late spring, -the Europeans agreed that the Chemists As- 'sociation could piiss the information on to 'the U.3. National Institute for Occupational `8afety and Health, the> Labor Department .agency that monitors worker safety. On -July 17, 1973, representatives of the associa- tion and the agency met. , ;_ .'One Certainty `' v. There is some dispute as to what trail-, Jiplred at the meeting. The Labor Depart ment agency claims it wasn't given the full Story; the chemists' association claims that !the agency misunderstood the findings. But 3>ne thing is certain: The agency,1 and, OSHA, mude no move to change the tan- ,dard of 500 purls per million and didn't do -so until after the human angiosarcoma adherance to one-part permtllion levels. learned that Mr. Parks had died the pre (IHU-IC, OllfOQ utu ^<1 WWUH -- ,,--- , Therefore, it seems cerium that the argu vious March of angiosarcoma of the liver. and there is less change for leaks than at ment won't abate. ... The doctor says he then realized that some the polymerization plants; none of the re As the controversy continues, it is reveal thing was seriously wrong, since another ported angiosarcoma cases In this country ing to examine how the hull between vinyl Goodrich PVC worker, a private patient of has occurred among workers making vinyl- chloride and cancer was established. If Or, Creech, had succumbed to' the same chloride monomer, and only one of the IQ nothing else, such an examination points out type of cancer in 1971. Dr. Creech says he deuths in Europe was in a monomer plant. I. the grave weaknesses of the present system knew that liver angiosarcoma is exceedingly In early 1967, the Manufacturing Chem-. -or lack thereof`-of protecting workers and rare and that two cases among such a small ists Association arranged with the Univer others from industrial husards. plant population was abnormal, fin fact, sity of Michigan to study acroosteolysls The Judgment Is made in hindsight, but medical men estimate that fewer than 30 among vinyl-chloride workers, particularly the history of vinyl chloride shows thut evi Cases occur eacti year in the O.S,, striking those who cleaned the reactor vessels and dence of its toxicity was often ignored. only one in 900,000 persons. I '" Others who were exposed to large concentra What's more, the chemical companies Dr. Creech met with Goodrich's occupa tions of vinyl chloride In the air. The Michi knew, but kept secret fur at least six tional health director, Dr. Maurice N. John gan scientists reported tn 1970 that although months, the fact that Itulian researchers son, wiio subsequently decided to ask Taber- they couldn't pinpoint vinyl chloride as the had shown that rats develop tumors, includ shaw-Cooper Associates Inc., a Berkeley, Cause of the disease, worker exposure to the ing angiosarcoma, when exposed to low Calif., epidemiologlcui-studies concern, to monomer should be cut to 50 parts per mil- levels of vinyl chloride monomer. European do a survey of Goodrich death records. But lion or below. : 1r companies, which paid for tile animal re the study was hardly needed; on Dec. 19, a Other than Dow, which had already insti search, knew of these research findings for third PVC worker at the Louisville plant tuted reductions In air level of the mon more than a year before the first human died at the age of 38; he had heen at the omer, the rest of the industry in the U.S. ig 1 cases were reported but didn't reduce the plant for 28 years. nored the recommendation, Nor was there exposure of their workers to vinyl chloride. Public Announcement any significant reaction to findings by Euro But Dr. Irving J. Selikoff, an expert on environmental carcinogens, or cancer-caus ing agents, claims that blame shouldn't be placed at industry's door alone. "We're all a bit responsible," he says "None of us did our homework.'' Culpability, tie says, should On Jan. 22 of this year, Goodrich officials met'ln Washington with officials of the Na tional Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and informed them of the three an giosarcoma deaths. The following day, Ken. lucty occupational-health officials also were pean Industry that animals developed ad verse effects from vinyl chloride. This was at least partly because the Europeans down graded the importance of some of their find ings. For example, Prof. Pier Luigi Viola, a medical director employed in Italy by Sol- be shared by scientists, government agen cies and labor unions. Hie case of Earl Parks Is illustrative. Mr. Parks first came to the attention of Informed and Goodrich made its first public announcement. . Almost since its first commercial intro duction, there have been reports that vinyl vay &Oe., the Belgian chemicals company, found bone changes in rats exposed to air levels of 30,000 parts per million of vinyl chloride; even more important, he found Goodrich medical people in lUtH, when the chloride Is toxic above certain levels. In- that vinyl chloride at that level caused ma company, concerned about the known liver deed, during World War II, vinyl chloride lignant tumors In the ear canals, lungs and , toxicity of ethylene dichlonde (a chemical was rejected as a surgical anesthetic be bones of rates. l i . . * - , ,- :; i from which vinyl chloride is made) tested cause animals developed heart irritation Prof. Viola reported' his findings before the liver function of workers in the Louis when exposed to it. In 1949, Russian scien an international cancer congress in Houston ville plant. tists reported "hepatitis-like changes" in In 1970. It was the first reported link be Mr. Parks's readings were abnormal. the livers of 25% of the workers In a small tween cancer and vinyl chloride. But the - Nevertheless, he continued to work at the PVC plant. professor expressed doubt about the purity . same Job, In October 1984, however, he was hospitalized with what was initially dlugnosed as a bleeding ulcer. Doctors treated the "ulcer" without surgery, and Mr. Parks was released. He was readmitted to the hospital the fol lowing May, and the decision was made to Then, in the late 1950s, research toxocolo- gists at Dow Chemical Co. showed that ani mals exposed to as few as 100 parts per mil lion of vinyl chloride (or 100 molecules of vinyl chloride in every one million mole cules of air I developed slight liver damage. Based on its research, Dow began a pro- of the vinyl-chloride gas he hud used and stated that the rat cancer findings, because i they occurred at such high levels of the monomer, had no human implications. ] (Prof. Viola subsequently found tumors , Jn rats exposed to 500 parts per million; but i this fact wasn't revealed until well after the operate. But when the operation was begun, gram in the !980s to reduce the level of first human angiosurcoma cases were re- surgeons. Instead of finding an ulcer, found instead that Mr. Parks's problem resulted Irom severe liver damage, which had caused blood to back up in the portal vein leading into the liver. The surgeons cor rected tlie vein problem with a shunt and took a sample of liver tissue for analysis. analyse, allowed (hat the liver '-ai1 hei-n `ciii.ig.d I,c - if-'SUjt b "ch-'miculs, ' "so rer wasn't mentioned. vinyl chloride monomer in the air of its. vealed. I <- i - .1 plants to below 50 parts per million. The Research Goes On , ii Dow published its results in 1961. But the Based on Prof. Viola's early cancer, find- ' rest of the industry chose to rely on a Y: Inga in rats, Montedison S.p.A,, the huge j University study that recommended ..alian chemicals company, in 1970 asked parts per million as a safe level. This i j Cesare Maltoni, a respected researcher at level had been recommended by the A | I the Institute of Oncology in Bologna, Italy, factor!:.,, .',`tu.MlStf ' vre** lo e- I f, Sfl'.Ma' : .id *. Hy o :- Was a*Yi Hied n 'C<12 I*y Hie / - '**' * Lyber iY-'f `.dnsi1 he ,,aJ too..! ference of Governmental lndusuial Hygien that 250 parts per million of vinyl chloride (According to teslimony at uSHA'a hear ists and was given the force of law by i >S` IA produced tumors in rats in three parts of : ings on vinyl chloride, held last June and in 1971. However, evidence at the UidriA the body; the ear canals, kidneys and the July, Mr. Parks received a total of almost hearings indicates that this level was regu liver, "ue liver tumors Included angiosar- $6,000 in workman's compensation from larly exceeded until this year in many coma. in,-, professor immediately Informed , Goodrich before he died, hut only after plants. (The hygienists' group didn't recom his sponsors. ' " ' ' ' ; * Goodrich protested that his illness couldn't mend lowering the level to 200 parts per The Europeans offered their Information , have resulted from exposure to the chemi million until 1972, four years after Dow con to the Manufacturing Chemists. Association ; cal. I cluded from further testa that repeated ex- . in the V.S., but only if the Americans guar- It was an alert Louisville doctor WhQ.flrst posure by workers to vinyl-chloride morn, ,.anteed confidentiality, JNUb - great re)ue>,, mtMuiabd the connect!on between angiosarcoma' amend* aiLyS^It ; - and vinyl chloride. Dr. John L, Creech, who or above tor a working lifetime could causu to 'iKi -secrecy condition .`'tiecause of the- for years has treated workers sent to him changes hi the liver,) vitalrimportance of learning of, ony/.lpdlcat , by Goodrich op a fee-per-patlent hasls, had During the 1960s, there were reports of a tiofjjf frain the European research r i.^With-* followed Earl Parka's case for some time, disease called acroosteolysla among vinyl-t Otft- die delays which could have resulted* even though he wasn't treating Mr; Parks, Chloride workers. The disease consists, qf. litom duplication of effort.!', - Pr, Qgyj^gjffi he had been concerned Skin lesions and changes in the blood vea- Jan. 30, 1073. a year before the first ' -' ' .............. > skiimm iingtoearroma cases were reported ucc 093803 ,ny..BUt;Sioi&rch, the W^`fyvidly-g^ the i .Maltoni data. For five months, the secrecy 'restrictions were such that government agencies, PVC workers exposed to vinyl ^chloride and even company doctors were 'kept in the dark. Then, In the late spring, -the Europeans agreed that the Chemists As- -soeiatkm could pitss the information on to the 0,3. National Institute (or Occupational `Safety and Health, the Labor Department .agency that monitors worker safety. On ;Ju!y 17, 1973, representatives of the associa tion und the agency met. 1 One Certainty ` There is some dispute as to what trail-. >plred at the meeting. The Labor Depart ment agency claims it wasn't given the full -Story; the chemists' association claims that jthe agency misunderstood the findings. But .one thing is certain; The agency,' and OSHA, made no move to change the stan dard of 500 parts per million and didn't do 'so until after the human angiosurcoma 'cases were announced. In Europe, by con trast, Great Britain had lowered the maxi- .mum level to 200 parts per million following Uhe cases of acroosteolysls in the '60s; and West Germany had set a level of 100 parts |per million in 1970, based on Dow's 1961 re sults with animals. According to New Scien tist, the British science Journal, "No other, 'section of the U.S. or European industry fol-, lowed Dpw's lead. The reasons for this in-r 'ternational confusion are obscure." This all changed quickly, of course, once the first human cases of angiosarcoma were '.reported by Goodrich. Indeed, the swiftness with which new research has been carried, out since Jan. 23 Is perhaps without prece dent in the world of medicine and science, r j1 Much of this recent research Is eon* ' cemed with studies of the Incidence of dis*. 'ease of all types among vinyl-chloride work-. ers. Thus far, some studies show that work ers exposed to high levels of vinyl chloride show greater than expected incidences not only of angiosarcoma but certain oilier can cers as well. The ramifications of these find ings for the future of the industry and Its workers remain to be seen. However, for the veteran PVC workers, whatever changes the findings produce will be useless in counteracting the Insidious effects of working day after day, year after year, in, what now is generally viewed as a contami nated atmosphere; ,a