Document pBk8xnO6Xyk6JqorY1q1wNj0D
THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA \ ANCOUN ER 8, CANADA
DEPARTMENT OF GEOLOGY
December 2nd, 1963*
Dr. Robert A* Kehoe, M.D., Department of Preventive Medicine and Industrial Health, The Kettering Laboratory, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, 19, Ohio.
Dear Dr. Kehoe:
Thank you very much for your letter of November 19th.
I appreciate very much your taking the time out to drop us a line when you have been even busier than usual because of the death of your associate, Professor Prank Princi. When I was in New York I learned of this unfortunate happening - I believe from Mr. Fowler of the Lead Research Association.
most important.
The one point which you raised in your letter is of course
Our remarks about the toxicity of lead resulted from a
quotation fran Professor Arthur V e m e s in his book "Mesure es Mdecine",
Paris 19li3 chap. XIV, page 278 - an English translation being approximately
as follows
"Cne remark has to be done about the use of lead (acetate), poisonous even in dose of the order of a few hundreds
jof milligram one must use it with great precaution.
In current practice, and when its turn to be used
ccoes, we make only 2 shots per week, at 2 or 3 days distance, separated by shots of platinum or iridium given during the other
four days."
I would not like you to think that we had carelessly inserted this canparison, and, should I be unfairly representing Professor V e m e s , I would certainly be grateful for your help in correcting the matter.
The meeting in New York was most successful in that Dr. Kurland and Dr. Santa, and many others concerned with health problems had a most useful part in the program, together with agriculturists and geologists from many parts of North America.
I hope that some of these papers are published in due course, and that seine useful co-operation may result.
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D r. R ob ert A. Kehoe
2.
Knowing your interest in the matter of lead you may be interested to know that recently we have had sane lettuces submitted to us for analysis, and, although their,,noimal" lead content seemed to be of the order of fran 2 to 10 parts per million (oven-dried), we did get one sample running a prodigious 250, and several running in the range of from 50 to 100 parts per million.
I have been wondering whether this has any significance or not. The Medical Officer who submitted these samples seit them fran a district which he has been investigating for many years, and which contains abnormal numbers of deaths frcsn cancer.
I am afraid we are imposing perhaps too frequently on your good nature, but, as you have surmised, it is extremely difficult to make advances in this field when onefe knowledge is largely geological.
Kindest personal regards,
lours sincerely,
Harry V. Warren, Professor, Department of Geology.
HVW/w,
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