As the nuclear arsenals grow, the contemplation of what chaos war may bring becomes an increasingly painful process. Those who embark upon the task and emerge with public comment on the perils they see are vulnerable to a charge of meddling in affairs beyond their competence or credibility. When doctors enter the debate, have they anything to add, as doctors rather than as alarmed citizens, to the mountain of words? Should they not concentrate on obvious ills in the textbooks and in the records of the World Health Organisation, rather than meditate on the psychology of conflict and on potential catastrophe? The emergence of this journal illustrates, among other things, that many in the medical profession have set aside these doubts and restraints. They wish to take part, as doctors, in a sustained public examination of the consequences of nuclear war and the already present impact of the threat it imposes.
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