About the Experiments 

Between 1960 and 1972 the University of Cincinnati hospital (then Cincinnati General Hospital) conducted Department of Defense-funded full-body radiation experiments on cancer patients without informed consent, and often unrelated to the patients’ cancers. There were at least eighty-nine participants in the experiments, at least forty-three of whom died within six months of treatment. Twenty-one died within one month. The average IQ of subjects was 89, 11 points below the human average, and subjects averaged five years of formal education. More than two-thirds of subjects were African American. Treatment was invasive and caused extreme physical and emotional side effects, including death.

In 1999 a settlement between the victim’s families and the University resulted in the placement of a commemorative plaque on the University’s campus. This small plaque contained inaccurate information, misrepresented the experiments, and was placed in an out of the way location, making it nearly impossible to access. Over the last twenty years, the plaque and the surrounding landscaping have suffered from lack of maintenance. The plaque is currently in storage due to ongoing construction. 

For additional information about the memorial and to learn more about the history of the experiments, visit our Resources tab.

The Goals of Boldly Better: Students for Monumental Change 

1. Provide a contemplative empathetic space for physicians and medical students to engage physically and spatially in a purposeful reflection on the responsibilities inherent in their chosen profession.

2. To name and humanize each victim of the full-body radiation experiments.

3. To engage in “truth-telling” about UC’s role in an unjust research experiment and to demonstrate the university’s willingness to take accountability for the actions of its past.