One man who was heavily involved in the manufacture of an arsenic-based weapon known as the ‘M’ device was the author’s Tasmanian great-uncle, Major Thomas Davies DSO, MC. It was during the production of this weapon in 1918-19 that large numbers of young women were exposed to highly toxic arsenic-based chemicals.
It is suggested that this led, some 50 years later, to by far the highest number of cases of female PDB (Paget’s Disease of the Bone) in the locality of the filling factory ever recorded anywhere in the world. Further investigations were conducted to verify the hypothesis that arsenic has been the primary cause of most cases of PDB in all reported disease hotspots, both in the UK and worldwide. This hypothesis also provides support for the reasons why more men than women suffer from the disease, why it is more prevalent in deprived areas, and why it was particularly prominent in NW England. It shows why it is common today in New Zealand and has not declined significantly in some regions of Spain and Italy.