Human Tissue Monitoring And Specimen Banking

The National Human Monitoring Program (NHMP) identifies concentrations of specific chemicals in human tissues, including toxicologic testing and risk assessment determinations. This volume evaluates the current activities of the NHMP; identifies important scientific, technical, and programmatic issues; and makes recommendations regarding the design of the program and use of its products.

There is a great dispar.ity between the ability of the major industrial nations to produce and distribute chemicals and our ability to comprehend the nature and potential severity of unintended consequences for man, his life support systems and the environment generally. Furthermore, the gap between our ability to produce and distribute myriad chemicals and our ability to identify, understand or predict unfavorable environmental impacts may widen. As environmental scientists we are conscious of the interrelatedness, not only of environmental systems, but of nations as well. Materials are continually moved across boundaries by human as well as natural agencies. The extent, rate and nature of transfer for most pollutants is largely unknown. We can only guess which of the numerous chemicals produced are candidates for concern. More important still is our practical ignorance of the mechanisms of chronic effects upon natural systems and of the concentrations, combinations and circumstances that may lead to irreversibilities or to serious consequences for man. We know very little also regarding the potential for or the kinds of indirect effects that might occur. With respect to the environmentltself, we know little of its assimilative capacity with regard to widely dispersed pollutants and their transformation products. But what we do know is disquieting, and a much-improved system for the evaluation and management of toxic and hazardous chemicals is needed.

Reviews monitoring strategies for environmental pollutants. Describes research on trace elements in biological systems. Features a discussion of exposure assessment of environmental pollutants. Explores the emerging role of environmental specimen banking and discusses recent developments in biomarkers.

Ever since the industrial revolution, large numbers of environmentally hazardous materials are in troduced into the global environment annually; a list of all substances which are at present re garded as environmentally hazardous might contain thousands of compounds, and new substan ces are still being added. Several major activities are necessary of adequately ensure the protec tion of human health and the environment from the often subtle effects of these materials. These activities include toxicological and ecological research, control technology development, the pro mulgation of regulatory guidelines and standards, and the monitoring of environmental materials and specimen banking. In the absence of effective monitoring environmental materials and spe cimen banking, the detection of serious environmental contamination from pollutants may occur only after critical damage has been done. Environmental problems are independent of national boundaries and international collaborative programmes should be encouraged. Sponsoring organisations and other international and national bodies should encourage monitoring and specimen bank programmes and develop harmonised sy stems for data acquisition and evaluation. An international pilot programme of monitoring and specimen banking is needed and is technically feasible. The conclusions and recommendations, for both implementation and research, should be of inte rest to other international and national bodies in addition to the three organisation sponsoring this International Workshop. Nevertheless this joint sponsorship should help to assure that the re sulting conclusions and recommendations will have a worldwide audience and that effective coor dination of existing programmes will be possible.