Loyd Cummings tried to ignore his headache when it began on Aug. 7, 2003. But the electronic technician, who was working in Japan on U.S. Navy radars, eventually collapsed from an aneurysm -- a bulge in a vein in his head.

He was transferred to the Yokohama Stroke and Brain Center after diagnosis in Yokosuka Naval Hospital. What happened next is disputed, but several doctors close to the case say that a combination of negligence and arrogance caused the death of the 53-year-old man on Aug. 9.

"If the doctors who operated on Mr. Cummings had been competent, he would be alive today," says one of the whistle-blowers (Doctor A), a medical adviser to the Ministry of Health and Welfare who wishes to remain anonymous. "Many doctors have paper licenses; they're literally not qualified to practice."