Grim Lessons At Hospital No. 6

To most of the world, the Chernobyl nuclear accident was a disaster of terrifying proportions. But for the specialists struggling to save lives at Moscow Hospital No. 6, the mishap created a kind of medical classroom--a unique if horrific opportunity to learn how to cope with large-scale exposure to deadly radiation. So far, the lessons have been sobering. "This incident has demonstrated our very limited ability to respond to nuclear accidents," says Dr. Robert Gale, 40, a bone-marrow-transplant expert from UCLA who helped Soviet counterparts treat Chernobyl victims. "If we are very hard pressed to deal with 300 cases, it should...