Personal Information
and History of Radiation Misuse

Axel Campbell
OCTOBER 2000

After many years of working for x-ray equipment manufacturers, I began to suffer the consequences of my association. At one point, I brought a scintillation counter into the engineering department of Machlett Laboratories in Stamford, Connecticut. Machlett developed the rotating anode tube. While demonstrating the counter, I detected a high energy source, cesium, in the desk of an engineer. I was reprimanded by a senior scientist with the threat, " If you ever bring that f!@#%^ng meter in here again, you'll never work for Machlett...the BRH would have closed the plant down." I never learned my lesson about helping people with radiation. In a dental office a pregnant dental assistant was using a short x-ray timer cord while exposing patients in the room.

I suggested that the dentist buy a longer timer cord to protect his assistants. He was furious and refused to take care of a tooth. I left in great pain. Seeking help from my childhood dentist, I discussed my experience with his very stern appearing hygienist. I told her of a case at Machlett in which an observation window for viewing operating x-ray tubes was replaced with plain glass...causing serious eye burns and facial burns to observers through that glass. She gave a nod of understanding, pointed the x-ray tube at my left eye from about fourteen inches, placed the leaded apron upon herself saying, "I need this more than you do." and ran out of the room. The exposures were extremely long. At home I timed them and estimated 15 seconds each for the four exposures. The next morning my eyes were sealed by a hardened puss. As the week progressed so did my photosensitivity...so that I had to remain in a darkened room. My tongue began to hemorrhage and ulcerate over the surface. My eyelids began to atrophy so that it was necessary to grasp the upper lids in order to prevent them from slipping into the orbital cavity of the eye. My mother asked where I had received a sunburn since I worked indoors.

Recovery was cyclical with moments of hope and despair. So I tried to avoid dentists for several years. But, finally, I brought my lawyer and myself to a dentist who claimed to be concerned about general health. The lawyer explained, as did I, in great detail how prolonged x-ray exposures to my whole head had produced serious radiosensitive reactions. During his first x-raying he stood next to the tube head to give me confidence. It was a short exposure, but I did not think it wise for him to stand next to the source. I did not comment on this. Several years went by.

Now the dentist caused a reaction from the lawyer by taking prolonged exposures from a distance. The lawyer said you better not do that to his fellow patient ...me. However, the lawyer did not tell me of this confrontation. So, I came wandering in for my regular examination. The dentist was upset about zoning not permitting him to move his office into his home. I tried to help to no avail. He was angry on this friday afternoon. When he took colored pictures of my teeth, I wanted my eighty-eight-year-old mother to approve the pictures as a prelude to caps. I called her in. The dentist said "NO!" I said yes let her come in. She came in. He grabbed the old woman by both shoulders and pushed her out of the room. Then it came time to be x-rayed. He pointed the open cone of the x-ray tube at my left eye and prolonged the exposure to my whole head as described by us. This time the hemorrhaging and ulcerations were even more serious than after the prior overexposure. In addition there were visual problems recorded on a retinal angiogram.

Can somebody help people like me? Documentation is on my website, http://home.att.net/~x-rays/Radiation-Xrays/.

Thank you,
Axel Campbell