Tobacco Documents Online

OF•PI. :ZTMEf17 OF NEAt~_TI ;, EDUCATf` N AND IYELFAhE f U'nLiC IiCI.tT~I-i S=F2\'1CL" • LYA£HIIdGTOM.,O.C. 2RZQ1 - Jonatizan E. Rhoads, M. D. Aruarican Cancer Society, Inc. "219 East 42nd Street • Vcw Yorks New York 100,17 taM vo- Dezr Dr. Rhoads: . review is necessary in order to establish the validity of the study. which have led to this request, we do not believe such a fo mal the Auerbach-hammond study. Sym,pathetic as we are to the reasons * _-establish a cc.,:,nittee of scientists to conduct a formal analysis of Ide have czrefully `reviewed your request that I as Surgeon General ' from- the Nattional Cancer Institute, and Dr. Ra},mond Yesner, a rvit•hheld. Anong the a,ualif{ ed persons who havt•:r already made thecr- - .seives facailiar with the data and c:ho have been Yive.n opportunity _ bn` ntnw. =:at ~i . .J~." .1, to YOSf7 0•.• ii:n j~ . .. . :J:.u V f u ec:t-avai~bi~1. _ " ` / It is contrary to fact that scientists have been prevented from revieain f the Auerbach-N.~..~..,o:~ d..,o:~d studyy or that- -any data have been other scientists; it is the institutional, "jury" review which we believe unneccsEary. Drs. Auerbac;n and }it:--iond' are qualified .There is no scientif-:tc study which c<_nnot benefit by t?he review of other persons, including scientists representing the tobacco industry. number of scientists outside the Gove:rnr,ent have also gone over the study in detail, and that the opportunity continues for review by . pathologist from the Veterans Ad:mir.istraticn. Ule tmdezstand that a investigators who have nade valuable contributions in their res, ective fields over a period of many years. They have carricd on the present ~ study under the most enir.ent sponsorship, that of your Society and of t~ the Veterans Administration. The proceduaEs they have followed have ~: been fully descrih?c: in the literature; they have i:ssncd what at pears to be an Edequate report of their study; 2nd they hrzve- opened their ~ ~ data to the inspectiou of othcrr scientists. Wr: do not know w:iat more Q~ can be expected of inve:;tigators, especially ttlose wi:th the reputations for excellence and probity enjoyed by Dr.s, Auerbach and li1.vzond. w .

. . 1412. . °',-~p= ~lerg ~: :s told us that he has no doubt but that the progressive Pagc 2-- .Ioar,than E. Phordc, 2i.Do cigarette Emoke, then the ans-wer is yes, in the view of a Public Fie.alth Service patholo~,iFt with special co~etence ii: cancer. This ~ also the view, we understand, -of Dr. Yesner and of the other pathologists who have reviewed the r-aterial. t'ubca of t,.,o of the doLa. 'Ir the question at issue is whettier human- t5-pe lung cancer has been discovered in the lungs of dogs exposed to bronchial tis sue4 off the auiyals e.tudied were as has descrihcd the:.1, a_nd that a.:iong othcr conditions f ound werz :,: arly i-nvnsi.ve squru<:oua cell crzr cino,:,a in the bronchial . -It is not :T=t:cescary to go to this study to support the conclusion that ciSarette smoking causes lung cancer in hui an beings. There was enougEl evidence six years ago to czuse the- Surgeon General`-s Advisory Comaittee on Smoking and Health to come to this conclusion, and this evidence hit:s been strergthened in the years since. I'he Auerbach~-Havciond otudy adds one more element of certainty to a concl1Lsion which the •wor2djs t•eaical and, health authori.ties already consider certain. .- -. n.zi ir:portzint new research tiool, an uniral sy stem on uhich nodifications 'ihe study is obviously sibnificant'on several scores. It appears to provide us with new insight into dose-zelated pulmonary changes, both neop?astic and non-neop :lastic an6 futhermore, it may provide us with e be an import ant- contribution to our^Understanding of the smoL:ing and feel certain from what ~:e already know of thr study that it will p.ove to the end of the calendar year. The r'.ue--bach--ua::ond study will be given. formal revCew at this tire in its prop(er context, as dne of many r~sscarcn utudies shedding, light on a difficult and i_,:portant health problem. I . The next review of the health consequences of smo~~~ing will be reported at Government as Wel1 as those in the Service itself. .- • world`s scientific literature on s moking and health and evaluates it with the help of ezn.inent scientists, selected from~ both those outside the - smoking. In preparing for- t.he_se revie4-s, the Service surveys the iz.n the ci~arette can be testcdd and evaluated., :T'he 1'ublic f?e41t , ~ ; e ~ ~ • ~ h 5ertiice hws t.l ~t~tu,Lo~--} respon_,imiiity of repoi-ting to the Congress at regular intervals on the health consequences of health question.