Richard Haylock and the nuclear test veterans

Dear Editor, J. Radiol. Prot. recently published a paper by Gilles and Haylock which was the latest in the series of epidemiological reports on the cancer status of the nuclear test veterans [1]. Although the authors gave their source of funding as the Ministry of Defence, I am surprised that the paper gave no conflict-of-interest statement by Dr Haylock. He wrote an expert report and gave evidence under oath for the Secretary of State for Defence (SSD) in the 2016 Royal Courts of Justice three-week Tribunal hearings: Leonard Abdale and Ors, and Donald Battersby and Ors vs. SSD [2]. The initial consolidated appeal began in 2010 with 16 appellants amongst whom there had been 8 cancers. One appellant of the 16, whose husband had died from pancreatic cancer, pulled out and was no longer in the group by 2016. Between 2010 and 2013 I was an expert witness and consultant for Rosenblatts Solicitors who represented most of the appellants over that period on behalf of the Royal British Legion. By the time of the final hearing in 2016 I had changed my role to legal representative for two veterans, Don Battersby and Barry Smith. Trevor Butler, who was one of the appellants, but on different grounds, unexpectedly died from the disease during the lead up to the case. That meant that by 2016, there had been four pancreatic cancers in eight cancers among the consolidated group of appellants. I cross-examined Dr Haylock in the witness box in 2016. Dr Haylock had been earlier asked in writing to calculate the probability of four pancreatic cancers in a random group of eight individuals who had cancer. He would not answer the question, also from the witness box when it was put to him, arguing that it was meaningless. The judge (Blake J) did not press him. Haylock, instead, answered a question which had not been asked, which was the expected number of pancreatic cancer deaths in the veteran study group to 1998. The cross examination was transcribed and the official transcript had been uploaded and is available at www. llrc.org. His cross examination was on Day 9, 23 June 2016 from page 30 to page 36.