日本研究水俣病學者逝世

Recently the NHK News on-line reported the following:

公害の原点と言われる「水俣病」の研究の第一人者で、半世紀にわたって患者の診察を続けてきた医師の原田正純さんが、１１日、急性骨髄性白血病のため、熊本市内の自宅で亡くなりました。
７７歳でした。

原田さんは、昭和９年、鹿児島県に生まれ、昭和３４年に熊本大学医学部を卒業して医師となり、翌年から水俣病の研究に携わりました。
昭和３７年には、母親の胎内で有機水銀の影響を受けた「胎児性」の水俣病患者の存在を発表し、水銀が母親の胎盤を通ることはないとされていた当時の世界的な医学界の定説を覆しました。
原田さんは、ごく最近まで水俣に通い胎児性患者の診察を続けるなど半世紀にわたり医師として水俣病に関わり続けました。

(試譯文)

As the first person who studied the so called the starting point of pollution the "Minamata disease",  Mr. Masazumi Harada as a doctor who had continued the medical examination of patients over half a century passed away at the house in Kumamoto on the 11th (June) due to acute myelogenous leukemia. He was 77 years old.

Mr. Harada was born to Kagoshima Prefecture in Showa 9th year. He graduated from the medical department, Kumamoto University in Showa 34th year to become a doctor, and was engaged in the research of Minamata disease from the next year.

In Showa 37th year he announced the existence of Minamata disease patients who were subject to the influence of organic mercury in a mother's womb as “fetal”, and reversed the established theory of the global medical world of those days that mercury was not carried through the mother's placenta.

Mr. Harada very recently still continued with medical examinations on fetal patients related to Minamata and had been continuing his concern with Minamata disease as a doctor for over half a century.

It is a sad news to hear that Dr. Masazumi Harada has passed away.