A-bomb radiation and diseases

Mass health screening was conducted in 65,483 A-bomb survivors (23,153 men and 42,336 women). Among them, 553 (0.84%) was found to have M proteinemia. The incidence of M proteinemia was higher in men (1.1%) than women (0.72%). M proteinemia was simply classified as benign monoclonal gammopathy (BMG) in 372 A-bomb survivors (67.3%), pre-myeloma (PreMM) in 81 (14.6%), myeloma (MM) in 77 (13.9%), and macroglobulinemia in 23 (4.2%). A higher incidence of M proteinemia was associated with aging; it was rapidly increased in the age-group of 70. Death was seen in 45 (8%) of all cases, frequently due to vascular disorder and cancer. Some of the BMG cases had a long process or developed either PreMM or MM. The incidence of BMG was significantly higher in the group of A-bomb survivors exposed to 100 rad or more than the control group. (N.K.)