More Human Radiation Tests Disclosed by Energy Dept.

A review has unearthed 48 more experiments in which hundreds of humans were subjected to radiation exposure, often with no evidence of consent, the Energy Department said Monday.

The additional human radiation tests were listed in stacks of documents made public by the department, including details about 95 previously hidden nuclear bomb detonations at the Nevada Test Site. The blasts went undetected because they were set off simultaneously with reported tests.

Energy Secretary Hazel O’Leary said the latest disclosures reflected a “tremendously tense balance” between providing the public more information about the government nuclear activities and maintaining national security. In December, she announced her openness initiative with the release of previously classified data on nuclear testing.

Meanwhile, the Energy Department disclosed that nearly $3.7 million already has been spent in efforts to learn more about the extent of human radiation experiments since World War II. It said the document searches eventually would cost at least $24 million.

A review of 11,000 such documents has disclosed at least 48 experiments in which humans were given various radioactive isotopes to determine the effects of radiation on the human body. Several tests were as recent as the 1980s.

Among the cases were:

* The use of pregnant women who were injected with radioactive iodine-131 to determine effects on the fetus. The women all had been scheduled for therapeutic abortions and the aborted fetuses were then tested for radiation.

* In 1946, six employees of a laboratory associated with the nuclear program were given plutonium-contaminated water to drink to investigate the absorption of plutonium. These tests were described as voluntary and at least two of the workers are still alive, according to the summary.