EMPIRE RADIUM

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 450, 7 February 1933, Page 7

EMPIRE RADIUM

CANADIAN FACTQRY OFFERS CHEAPER CANCER TREATMENT. CHALLENGE TO BELGIUM Pbrt Hope (Ont.), Saturday. Thousands of cancer sufferers may look with renewed hope to-day to a humble factory in this quiet Lake Ontario town. Opening a new chapter in Canada's crowded mineral history, the only radium refinery in the British Empire will be operating here within 10 days, and its product will go to all paris of the world. Maue from Canadian ore, and shipped by Canadian airways to the allCanadian plant here, the radium will prove Canada's challenge to the Belgian syndicate which now controls the world's supply of radium. If present plans materialise, the radium will be so eheaply and efficiently produced that its price will be lowered. Even j the poorest cancer patient. will ultimately be able to afford the radium treatments which have proved most efficient in the treatment of the dread disease. Fifty-six tons of pitchblende, of a richness almost unbelievahle, is stackj ed at the Eldorado plant here. Ac~ j cording to Canadian Government geo- ; logists, it averages between 4 and 5 per cent, uranium oxide and will produce about 125 milligrammes of refined radium per ton. The present price of radium is about £140 per milligramme. Far up the shores of Great Bear I Lake Gilbert Labine, a veteran pros- ! pector, stumhled across the pitch- ' blende veins which are regarded as ■ Canada's greatest mineral discovery ! and contribution to medicine. Labori- ■ ously, the 56 tons were bagged. Twenty tons were sent to Ottawa. The rest 1 was sent to Port Hope. Now all has been concentrated at the new plant. , World Watches New Field. ! Scientists the world over are watching this little factory. The closelyguarded secrets of a new radhun-pro-cessing, discovered by Canadian scientists and expected to revolutionise the industry, have aroused tremendous interest. For under the Canadian process, the fullest possible recovery ! of radium from pitchblende is expected. It required long, arduous toil, this j new processing discovery. Mr. WesI , ley A. Gordon, Federal Minister of ! ; Mines, announced its completion in j laconic, style. I "Chemists of the department, unj der the direction of Mr. W. B. Timrn, ! ! have been working for more than a i j year on a process of taking radium | from Great Bear Lake ores. They Uiave now succeeded in developing a ( | method which they helieve will be apj 1 plieable to the various types of ore ! j that may be found. ! j "Fortunately for the new field, and | fortunately for humanity, the Cana- ! j dian process will permit as great, if I ' not greater, percentage of recovery, | involving a shorter time and less eomI plicated methods than any of the less-known operations. I have every confidence Canada not only will he I able to supply our own needs for therapeutic, scientific and commercial purposes, hut we will be able to enter the world markets in competition with any existing monopoly."