ABCC (Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission)

An Introduction to the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission (ABCC)

The Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission (ABCC) was established by the United States government in the aftermath of the atomic bombings. Its purpose was to study the biological effects of the new weapons on human beings. ABCC was deployed to Japan in 1946, and, in collaboration with a Japanese medical research body, it built research facilities in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. 

ABCC conducted research based on medical examinations of bomb survivors, as well as on autopsies of victim's bodies. The Commission brought little to no medical or humanitarian aid to the affected populations. While American and Japanese doctors and researchers worked for the ABCC, the research data and medical samples were ultimately owned by the United States. 

Failures of the ABCC

Data gathered by the ABCC helped create a comprehensive understanding of the consequences of the bombings, including the long-term effects of radiation on the human body. Aspects of this project, however, were inhumane to the survivors and their families. Until 1952—the end of American occupation of Japan—any public information around the bombings was banned and the ABCC worked in secret. The hibakusha were summoned for medical examinations without knowing their purpose, and medical acts were conducted without patients’ or their families’ consent. Patients were not compensated for their time spent at the ABCC's facilities, although most patients were forced to take time off work to attend examinations. Patients later reported that they were harassed by the Commission's doctors and researchers.

Criticism of the ABCC and the founding of the Radiation Effects Research Foundation (RERF)

When it was finally possible to publicly discuss the Commission's research, the ABCC attracted growing criticism in Japan and beyond. In the late 1950s, some improvements were implemented, including collaboration with local hospitals and an increase in patient care. Yet the ABCC faced continued mistrust and criticism. The Commission was closed in 1975 and was replaced by a private nonprofit institution, the Radiation Effects Research Foundation (RERF), that same year. The RERF pursues research to this day with equal participation by Japan and the United States.

The first atomic bombs were used in Hiroshima and Nagasaki without any knowledge of the consequences that these novel weapons would have on the human body. While the ABCC conducted critical research, it nonetheless drew stark criticism. Atomic bomb survivors and their families were treated as experimental subjects, rather than valued patients who deserved respect, care, and compensation. The legacy of ABCC's research practices casts a shadow on atomic bomb research to this day.