Chernobyl doctor found not reliable to testify in cancer case

Lawyers hoping to convince juries that diesel exhaust causes a certain type of cancer have lost one of their most prestigious experts – a celebrated researcher who helped coordinate care for Chernobyl victims.

Despite Dr. Robert Gale’s long list of credentials, a Washington appeals court this month disqualified him from a lawsuit blaming BNSF for a worker’s colorectal cancer. It found fault with the conclusions Gale was set to tell jurors before a Spokane judge found his testimony unreliable, which resulted in plaintiff Judy Cundy losing her lawsuit.

Among the issues were a misrepresentation of sources he reviewed, having included in his report that the International Agency for Research on Cancer found some studies showed engine exhaust could cause cancers of the larynx and colon.

But that section of the IARC report, submitted by the firm Marc J. Bern & Partners, did not include what he said. Instead, it...