However , government officials say the cause was under the floor of a nearby house : old bottles containing radium powder .

然而，政府官员称是由于附近一所房屋地板下有旧瓶子装有镭粉造成的。

Radium , that source of x-rays used to treat some cancers , had induced fatal malignancies in marie curie and her fellow researchers .

用于治疗某些癌症的x射线源镭曾在玛丽居里和其研究员同事们身上诱发了致命的恶性肿瘤。

Ironically , its active ingredient is radium , a substance more usually thought of as a cause of cancer than as a treatment .

讽刺的是带有放射性的镭是其成分之一，通常镭更多地被认为是引发癌症而不是治疗癌症的物质。

But he does manage to track down some elements traders who will sell him magnesium salvaged from ships and radium from the glowing hands of old wristwatches .

但他确实设法追查到了某些元素贸易商，从他们手中买下了从沉船中打捞的镁和老式手表发光指针上的镭。

But one reason radium is dangerous is that , as a glance at the periodic table will show , it is chemically similar to calcium , a principal ingredient of bone .

但是镭的危险性在于镭和钙具有相似的化学特性，这在元素周期表里面可以看到，然而钙是骨头的主要成分。