Myelofibrosis with Myeloid Metaplasia in Survivors of the Atomic Bomb in Hiroshima

Abstract

This report concerns 12 cases of idiopathic generalized myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia among patients autopsied at the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission (ABCC), Hiroshima, Japan. The clinical and autopsy findings are summarized. Ten of the patients were exposed to varying amounts of ionizing radiation at the time of the atomic bomb in August 1945. The autopsy prevalence of myelofibrosis among members of the population exposed up to 10,000 meters was found to be 4 1/2 times greater than among the nonexposed population at ABCC and 18 times greater than the autopsy incidence throughout the remainder of Japan. The data supports the concept that myelofibrosis is a primary hematopoietic disorder related to leukemia and the other myeloproliferative disorders.