Japan mercury-poisoning victims demand tests, 60 years later

TOKYO (AP) — Six decades after "Minamata disease" mercury poisoning was first discovered, victims and their advocates are demanding tests for food toxicity and illnesses be carried out to help identify patients.

[...] tests could have greatly reduced the number of victims if done earlier, said Toshihide Tsuda, a doctor whose civil lawsuit demanding such tests was rejected by the Tokyo District Court on Wednesday.

Tsuda sued the Japanese government to demand it conduct tests for methyl mercury poisoning.

Thousands of people were sickened or crippled by neurological disorders from the mercury leaks into Minamata Bay and nearby waters by chemical company Chisso Corp., which continued for more than a decade.