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Statement Of Morimoto (22 August 1947) MORIMOTO, KENJI 36, worked in Ishiyama Surgical Clinic on graduating in 1935, in army as 1st Lt. from 1938 to 1945, returning to Medical College as lecturer in Ishiyama Surgery, and an assistant to Ishiyama in operating. Morimoto participated in operations performed on American PWs in the early part of June 1945,in the Autopsy Section since experimental, and thus the regular operating rooms were not used. An experimental operation is one performed on a person not necessarily ill to determine some unknown fact about some function of the human body in contrast to an ordinary operation performed on an ill person to cure. Not customary for KIU doctors to experiment on humans. Morimoto has conducted experiments on the appendix, principally the reaction of the nervous system when an appendix is inflamed. Senba was experimenting on the use of sea water as a possible blood substitute. Ishiyama was experimenting on brain surgery, epilepsy, gall stones, acute lung collapse. Torisu was experimenting on sea water as a blood substitute, worked with Senba. Hirao was experimenting with stomach cancer. Komori was experimenting on cholecystographic, the X-ray of the gall bladder, fluroscopic exam of the gall bladder. Torisu was a professor, Hirao was an assistant professor, Morimoto a lecturer, Senba a special graduate student, Komori a military doctor who, prior to his induction in the army was a lecturer at Ishiyama's clinic. Mori was a lecturer, Hirako a professor, all at KIU. In early June 1945 Hirao told Morimoto of the operations to be performed on PWs in the autopsy room of KIU, had previously heard from someone in the lab of Ishiyama Surgery that PWs had been previously operated on in the autopsy room. Hirao on this occasion told Morimoto that he needed an assistant, ordered him to help. Morimoto thought this operation strange, but could not refuse because Hirao was his superior and according to Japanese custom could not refuse his order, would have been dismissed from Ishiyama Clinic as a lecturer. On the same day of the order, Morimoto at about 1300 went to the autopsy room alone. There was no one there. No preparations for an operation had been made. There were some dissecting tables on the right side of the room, and the left side there were some stools and writing desks. Morimoto then took a walk in the garden, returned to the autopsy room, at which time there were 4-5 people preparing for the operations. Morimoto helped place the dissecting tables for the operations. 2 dissecting tables placed in the center of the room; a small table was placed next to one of the dissecting tables. Perhaps Miki placed the surgical instruments on these small tables. There were no sterilized sheets on top of the dissecting tables as is customary in all operations. The doctors scrubbed their hands for 10 rather than the customary 20 minutes. Not customary to operate except on an operating table. Ishiyama, Komori and Morimoto scrubbed. 2 Japanese soldiers brought a PW into the anatomy building, (not sure whether walking or carried) and put him in the room next to the Morimoto -2- autopsy room. Later Morimoto noticed 2 other PWs taken into the same room. The PWs appeared as though they had been given some basic anaesthesia, appeared weak, were blindfolded; Morimoto noticed no wounds. Before Morimoto scrubbed, he heard a truck drive around the rear of the Anatomy Section Building, heard from someone that the PWs were arriving, walked outside and noticed a Japanese army truck parked behind the anatomy section building. There were some doctors waiting there; believes Nogawa and Tashiro were among them. Komori got off the truck; there were 3 Pws aboard. When Morimoto finished scrubbing, he noticed a PW lying on the dissecting table at far right hand corner of the room, then saw a 2nd PW escorted by 2 Japanese soldiers placed on the center table, and his shirts, pants, underdrawers, shoes and socks were removed. Persons operating or assisting on 1st PW; Ishiyama, Komori, Miki, Morimoto. While customary, the hair was not shaved off the Prisoners abdomen prior to the incision. Ishiyama made an incision from just below the ribs to the umbilicus, about 15 centimeters long. Komori and Ishiyama then applied hemostats to Check the bleeding. Morimoto wiped off the excess bleeding with gauze so that the operating area, would stay clean. Ishiyama then cut the peritoneum, applied a retractor to keep the incision open, cut the lobus sinistra of the liver, and in so doing injured the vene portae of the liver, which meant that the PW was doomed. Since that was fatal, Ishiyama stopped the operation— his objective had been to remove half of a liver without injuring the vene portae. Ishiyama did not attempt to sew the vene portae to check the bleeding, but sewed the peritoneum and then the abdominal wall, the PW dying just about the time that the abdominal incision had been sutured. This operation lasted about 30 minutes. Ishiyama did not attempt to save his life by sewing the vene portae or to check the bleeding. He was practicing new methods of operating on the liver. The operation was not necessary— Morimoto saw nothing wrong with the liver. The liver is operated on where there is cancer and metastose of stomach cancer in lobus sinistra, provided the lobus dexter is in a healthy condition. Since Ishiyama was considered a famous surgeon at KIU, no one else tried to do anything for the PW when he finished. Morimoto examined the liver and stomach, saw no pathological symptoms. Komori gave basic anaesthesia to the PW before taken to KIU; PW was unconscious during operation. Hirao told Morimoto that Komori had given him morphipe. Such an experimental operation was not within the limits of Japanese medical jurisprudence. Morimoto then began preparing for the 2nd operation. He, Ishiyama and Komori washed their hands. Another PW was brought in, placed on a table, and Ishiyama, Komori, Miki and Morimoto began the operation. Anaesthesia was then administered— either chloroform or ether. The operation was to be performed on the lung. The area in which the operation was to be performed was not made sterile by shaving the hair and applying antiseptic. Ishiyama made an incision on the chest vertically about 20 centimeters: Komori and Ishiyama checked the bleeding Morimoto -3- by applying hemostats. Morimoto wiped blood with gauze. Miki passed the instruments to Ishiyama when requested. Ishiyama then suggested that he would use the Kocher method to operate on the lung. (Morimoto had not seen a lung operated before.) Ishiyama cut the ribs to get to the lung, the abdominal wall was then retracted. Ishiyama spoke to Japanese staff Officers, one of whome was Sato. Morimoto believes one lung was cut out. The PW died shortly after the operation began. It is Morimoto's opinion that the PW was too weak and undernourished to undergo such an operation, that he died of mediastinal collapse due to Ishiyama cutting the pleural cavity of the lung which, when exposed to air, caused the collapse of the lung. Since the PW was dead, Morimoto doesn’t recall whether the incision was sutured. Morimoto saw an autopsy being performed on the 1st PW by someone from Hirako's anatomy section. The 3rd Prisoner was operated on by Hirao and Senba — operating on the femural artery, this for experimental purposes. Senba or Hirao was injecting sea water into the PW’s arm to substitute for the blood that was being siphoned from the PW's leg. What was being determined by Senba and Hirao was common knowledge, Morimoto believes this PW died as a result of the unnecessary experimental operation. Before the operation was performed Morimoto saw 3 coffins in the rear of the autopsy room. It is Morimoto's opinion that the PW's were doomed to death by the Japanese army and therefore they were taken to the University so that the doctors could perform experimental operations. It was understood by all persons present that the PWs would not survive the operation. Morimoto had heard in the lab at the Ishiyama Clinic that experimental operations-had been conducted by Ishiyama in the autopsy room and that the PWs died as a result of the operations performed on them, and thus expected that the PWs he assisted operating on would die. Persons attending these operations: Ishiyama, Komori, Torisu, Hirao, Mori, Senba, Tsutsui, Nogawa, Tashiro and Miki. Brain, lung and stomach operations were performed on the PWs. Senba, Hirao and Mori told Morimoto about the 1st series while they were interned at Sugamo. Morimoto's opinion that since Komori had received his medical education in the Ishiyama clinic, he was friendly to him, and since Komori was a medical Officer in the Japanese army he would have knowledge of the fate of the PWs who were interned at the prison camp in Fukuoka. Since he was a medical Officer in the army he would have knowledge of the fate of the PWs who were interned at the prison camp in Fukuoka. Since he was interested in the advancement of medical research at KIU he could have asked Sato to release the Prisoners to him so that he could perform experimental operations. Permission to perform experimental operations would not have to be granted by the President of KIU (Hyakutake) Hirako would have to grant permission to perform operations in the autopsy room since he had charge of it; he attended some of the operations. This was the first time that Ishiyama conducted experiments on humans. It is Morimoto's opinion that permission to release the Prisoners to KIU for experimental operations would have to come from someone higher in rank than Sato. Morimoto doesn’t believe that Hyakutake knew anything about Morimoto -4- the experimental operations because he never received any reports from Ishiyama concerning the experimental operations on PWs since Ishiyama did not conduct these operations on an official basis, wherein reports would be sent to the KIU President. Morimoto knows of no reports made on these operations. Morimoto feels that the experimental operations performed on the PWs were of beneficial aid toward the advancement of medical science at KIU-since Ishiyama was trying new methods to operate on various organs of the human body. Hirao and Senba made a useless experimental operation on one PW when they siphoned the blood and replaced it with sea water to act as a blood substitute; they did not have the necessary equipment to perform the experiment, but they nevertheless went ahead; this experiment had no benefit toward advancement of medicine. Morimoto was later told by Hirao, Mori and Senba that the operations he attended were the last performed, said that from 17 May to the early part of June there had been stomach, lung and brain operations. Recalls someone stating (in the lab ?): ("Today we operated on PWs." After the surrender Sato went to KIU to speak to Ishiyama, who was not in his room, so Sato went to see Torisu, who was also absent, then came to Morimoto, told him to tell Ishiyama that WAH had devised a plan and had made a report to Tokyo stating that the PWs that had been sent to the University for experimental operations were sent to Hiroshima and died there. Sketch on following page: |