Health Research Causing Shaking in War Industries

Health Data Shunned by Mainstream Media

This research on health findings in Iraq is truly astonishing and points to Cancers being seen in Iraq.  It also points to children’s health and the potential alteration in the ratio of  male to female population trend being seen in Iraq.  The question would also surface of what is being seen in the Northern areas of Saudi Arabia sine 1990-91 Gulf War?

This research is huge considering the effort to cover  a total population of 4,843 and a 60% response rate that occurred as US Combat Brigades have started their withdrawal from Iraq.  62 cancers cases out of 711 responses would seem to qualify for a cancer cluster.  Lymphomas, breast cancers, and brain cancers are being identified in this study.  Sixteen (16 cases) of childhood cases should make us all pause and ponder what has been unleashed in this pandora’s box.

Other research questions that should be asked and pondered include:

1.  Female early hysterectomy rates.

2.  Loss of Fetus Rates

3.  Neuro-Cognitive Problem rate occurrence

4.  Blood Disorders Prevalence Rates

5.  Auto Immune Disorder Diagnosis Rate

Iraq has suffered since 1980.  The war conditions that existed for 30 years and exposures that occurred there and in Iran should illuminate the world on the toxicities of chemicals and depleted uranium, the question is will the citizens of the world pay attention and raise concern and force a change on the supply and use of hazardous elements of warfare?

A really good question would be: are these health facts triggering the rise of more radicalism and terrorism?

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2010, 7(7), 2828-2837; doi:10.3390/ijerph7072828

ArticleCancer, Infant Mortality and Birth Sex-Ratio in Fallujah, Iraq 2005–2009Chris Busby ^1,* , Malak Hamdan ² and Entesar Ariabi ^{3 1} Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Ulster, Cromore Rd, Coleraine, BT52 1SA, UK
² 100 Tanfield Avenue, Neasden, London, NW2 7RT, UK
³ 82 Goldsmith Road, London, N11 3JN, UK^* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.Received: 7 June 2010; in revised form: 23 June 2010 / Accepted: 30 June 2010 / Published: 6 July 2010

Abstract:

There have been anecdotal reports of increases in birth defects and cancer in Fallujah, Iraq blamed on the use of novel weapons (possibly including depleted uranium) in heavy fighting which occurred in that town between US led forces and local elements in 2004.

 In Jan/Feb 2010 the authors organised a team of researchers who visited 711 houses in Fallujah, Iraq and obtained responses to a questionnaire in Arabic on cancer, birth defects and infant mortality. The total population in the resulting sample was 4,843 persons with and overall response rate was better than 60%.

Relative Risks for cancer were age-standardised and compared to rates in the Middle East Cancer Registry (MECC, Garbiah Egypt) for 1999 and rates in Jordan 1996–2001.

Between Jan 2005 and the survey end date there were 62 cases of cancer malignancy reported (RR = 4.22; CI: 2.8, 6.6; p < 0.00000001) including 16 cases of childhood cancer 0-14 (RR = 12.6; CI: 4.9, 32; p < 0.00000001).

Highest risks were found in all-leukaemia in the age groups 0-34 (20 cases RR = 38.5; CI: 19.2, 77; p < 0.00000001), all lymphoma 0–34 (8 cases, RR = 9.24;CI: 4.12, 20.8; p < 0.00000001), female breast cancer 0–44 (12 cases RR = 9.7;CI: 3.6, 25.6; p < 0.00000001) and brain tumours all ages (4 cases, RR = 7.4;CI: 2.4, 23.1; P < 0.004).

Infant mortality was based on the mean birth rate over the 4 year period 2006–2009 with 1/6th added for cases reported in January and February 2010.

There were 34 deaths in the age group 0–1 in this period giving a rate of 80 deaths per 1,000 births. This may be compared with a rate of 19.8 in Egypt (RR = 4.2 p < 0.00001) 17 in Jordan in 2008 and 9.7 in Kuwait in 2008.

The mean birth sex-ratio in the recent 5-year cohort was anomalous.   Normally the sex ratio in human populations is a constant with 1,050 boys born to 1,000 girls. This is disturbed if there is a genetic damage stress. The ratio of boys to 1,000 girls in the 0–4, 5–9, 10–14 and 15–19 age cohorts in the Fallujah sample were 860, 1,182, 1,108 and 1,010 respectively suggesting genetic damage to the 0–4 group (p < 0.01).

Whilst the results seem to qualitatively support the existence of serious mutation-related health effects in Fallujah, owing to the structural problems associated with surveys of this kind, care should be exercised in interpreting the findings quantitatively.

http://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/7/7/2828