Life shortening and disease incidence in BALB/c mice following a single d(50)-Be neutron or gamma exposure

Male BALB/c mice, 12 weeks old, were given a single exposure of either ¹³⁷Cs γ rays or d(50)-Be neutrons at a dose rate of 3 Gy/min. The animals were kept until death, and causes of death or possible causes of death were ascertained by autopsy and histology. The data were evaluated by completing risk methods. The survival time dose-effect curve for both types of exposure was linear and did not differ significantly (slopes: 55.8 ±4.0 days/Gy for neutrons and 46.2 ±4.3 days/Gy for γ rays). The incidence of different diseases also was similar for both groups except that more carcinomas, sarcomas, and myeloid leukemias seemed to occur after neutron exposure and that nonstochastic lung and kidney diseases seemed to arise at lower doses.