Officials estimate that 500 to 1,000 people have beryllium disease or will develop it.

Like all beryllium compounds, BeO is carcinogenic and may cause chronic beryllium disease.

Craig Hall, 51, an electrician at Hanford for 23 years, says he was the first to receive the chronic beryllium disease diagnosis.

Hansen died of beryllium disease in 1949 as a result of exposure to beryllium oxide (BeO).

Between 1% and 15% of people are sensitive to beryllium and may develop an inflammatory reaction in their respiratory system and skin, called chronic beryllium disease.

If beryllium concentrations in air are high enough (greater than 100 g/m), an acute condition can result, called acute beryllium disease, which resembles pneumonia.

The more common serious health problem from beryllium today is chronic beryllium disease (CBD), discussed below.

The symptoms of acute beryllium disease are non-specific, resembling other inhalational injuries, viral infections, or pneumonia.

There is no specific diagnostic test for acute beryllium disease.

Beryllium is a toxic metal that can cause immune sensitization, chronic beryllium disease, and cancer, with effects occurring in some people at very low levels of exposure.