Statements Concerning Ishiyama

Statement of Makino (18 June 1947) About 12 May 1945 Tanaka told Makino that Hirako had said Ishiyama was going to do an operation on an American PW who was hurt, and that the operation was to be held in the Autopsy Room of the Anatomy Department.

When prisoners arrived for operation, there was an army Officer, a Maj. or Lt. Col., and an army doctor on the truck. Ishiyama, Hirab, and some others, dressed in white, were standing at the head of the truck.

In Autopsy Room at first operation - across the table from where Makino entered, from the students' practice room, stood Ishiyama. Hirao was stand­ing behind Ishiyama, near the instrument table, was passing instruments to Ishiyama.

When Makino first looked, the incision had already been made, and Ishiyama and Komori were applying gauze trying to stop the flow of blood. Ishiyama and later Komori both said to the army staff Officer, (Sato?) "The operation is very difficult." Just before Makino left, he saw Tanaka walk around and stand behind Ishiyama.

After going to Latrine, Makino stopped in the autopsy room again and stood at the foot of the operating table. Ishiyama and Komori were still working on the Prisoners chest. Ishiyama then turned his head and said, "Someone tell someone to bring a coffin." Makino went to the servants' quarters, told them what Ishiyama had said.

As Tanaka and Makino were leaving the lab. with their bottles for specimens, on their way to Autopsy Room, they met Ishiyama and the army doctor coming down the hall.

About 2-3 days later, on 19 May, about 1400 Tanaka came in, said "It seems as though Ishiyama will perform another operation today."

The army doctor (Komori ?) was standing on this side of the table and directly opposite him on the other side of the table stood Ishiyama. To the left of Ishiyama stood Hirao and behind them several nurses.

Tanaka told Makino this was to be a liver operation. Makino noticed, as he stood on tiptoes, that both Ishiyama and Komori were using a gauze and "Kocher" trying to stop the flow of blood from an opening in the Prisoner’s stomach.

Ishiyama and Komori were working very fast and talking to each other. About the time that Ishiyama and Komori changed their gloves this doctor (unknown) raised his head, said something to Ishiyama, who then said something to him, whereupon either the one taking the pulse or the one standing behind him sent for and brought a glass container containing about 1000 cc of clear liquid, like water, from where it was standing on an instrument table.

The man who was tasking the injection was constantly raising his head and saying something to Ishiyama.

About this time Ishiyama brought out a flat red-brownish object from P's. stomach. Hirao held out a flat metal tray and Ishiyama placed the part of the liver on it. Komori and Ishiyama continued to work in the opening of the Prisoners stomach with gauze and "Kocher." When Ishiyama removed liver he held it in his hand, held it out to the army staff Officer, the same one at the first operation and said, "It was well done."

Ishiyama

Statement of Makino Cont'd. Makino doesn't know whether the liver operation was still going on at the other table, but Ishiyama and the other doctors were still around the table.

Makino then thus changes his story: After the first operation, after Ishiyama showed the liver to the army staff Officer, he noticed 3-4 men standing around another table in the far right corner of the autopsy room. Instead of leav­ing the room, as he had previously said, Makino walked over to the table and watched Hirao and Mori performing the operation on the stomach and intestines.

In the other part of the autopsy room at that time, everyone was gathered around the other table where Ishiyama was performing the liver operation.

Statement of Tashiro (5 June - 9 July 1947) About 1330 on 10 May when Tashiro arrived at the autopsy room, already there were Ishiyama, Torisu, Hirao, Mori, Tsutsui and Komori plus an army Officer and 2 or 3 others. Ishiyama, Torisu, Mori, Hirao and Komori were washing their hands.

While Ishiyama and Komori were washing their hands, Tashiro overheard Komori tell Ishiyama that about an hour before the Prisoners were brought to the University they had been given an injection of morphine.

Miki stood between Hirao and the instrument table and Tsutsui was with Ishiyama.

Ishiyama injected a local anaesthetic of about 100 cc of Percamin in the right side of the Prisoner's chest. After the sheet was placed over the Prisoner, Ishiyama came to the table and stood between Hirao and Miki on the Prisoner's right side. Miki gave Ishiyama the forceps and he pinched the Prisoner's chest to feel the pain. The Prisoner did not move. Ishiyama took a scalpel and made an incision about 10 centimeters in length, right over the right breats and about 3-4 centimeters below the wound. When the incision was made, the bleeding was heavy and Hirao, Torisu and Ishiyama put Kocher Clamps on the blood vessels.

Ishiyama widened the incision by cutting deeper. After cutting to the mem­brane that covered the ribs he stopped and felt in the incision. Ishiyama then cut the membrane over each rib from about 3 to 6 centimeters and pushed the membrane back, then cut off pieces of 4-5 ribs ranging in length from 3-5 centimeters, gave them to the nurse.

After removing the parts of the ribs, Ishiyama took forceps and pulled the pleura into view. The patient then coughed. Ishiyama lowered the pleura and waited until the coughing stopped. He again pulled the pleura up. It seemed to Tashiro that he was probing around for a possible bullet. Torisu with forceps also grabbed the pleura with Ishiyama, who then made an incision of about 1 centimeter with the scalpel— then with the scissors he lengthened the incision to about 6 centimeters. As soon as the pleura was opened the Prisoner seemed to have difficulty breathing, and he rocked on his shoulders for 2-3 minutes. The doctors waited until this stopped and Torisu and Hirao then retracted the pleura.

ISHIYAMA

Statement of Tashiro Cont'd.....Ishiyama then looked into the incision and following this placed his hand in the incision and seemed to be feeling the lungs— everytirae he touched them the Prisoner coughed. He then took the scissors and probed around inside the chest apparently searching for the arter. Torisu then tied it off in 2 places, Tashiro believes. Ishiyama then probed with scissors for the bronchial tubes, which Torisu tied off, taking one suttare— Tashiro could not see whether this was the main tube or the 3 smaller ones. Torisu waited until the Prisoner stopped coughing before tying the tube off. This had taken about an hour and Tashiro becoming tired, and not having a good vantage point, left the operating room.

About a week or 10 days after the operation Morimoto told Tashiro that there would be an operation on a PW sad asked Tashiro to carry the operating instruments to the autopsy section. However, Tashiro had a patient to treat, finished, found that the operating equipment was gone, went to autopsy section but on their way walking toward 1st Surgery, he saw Morimoto, Senba, and Komori. At that time Tashiro heard Ishiyama tall Komori that it was impos­sible to perform a brain operation without a vacuum pump. Tashiro believes the operation was finished.

At the 27 May meeting of Fukuoka Surgical Council, Tashiro is quite sure that Ishiyama made a comment about salt water after Tomoda had announced that AA was excellent as a blood substitute, said that AA was difficult to procure and that plain seawater could be used. Ishiyama said that Senba, of his staff, was conducting experiments.

At the meeting Ishiyama made an announcement regarding the effects of high explosives on a swimmer, when exploding in water.

Ishiyama directed the research supported by the University Research Fund granted by Department of Education, which was kept informed on the research.