The approximately 200,000 uranium miners employed by Wismut AG in the former Soviet occupation zone of East Germany were exposed to very high levels of radiation, particularly between 1946 and 1955, but also in later years. This exposure was caused by the inhalation of radon and its radioactive by-products, which were deposited to a considerable extent in the inhaled dust. Radiation exposure was expressed in the historical unit of working level month (WLM). This unit of measurement was introduced in the 1950s specifically for occupational safety in uranium mines in the U.S. to record radiation exposure resulting from radioactive exposure to radon and its decay products in the air we breathe. Approximately 9000 workers at Wismut AG have been diagnosed with lung cancer.