Itai-itai disease was the first documented occurrence of mass cadmium poisoning in the world. It occurred in 1950 in Toyama Prefecture in Japan. However, the first time the disease was reported here was in 1912. Toyama Prefecture was at the time the leading industrial prefecture on the Japan sea coast. Itai-itai disease literally translates to “ouch-ouch” disease, named for the painful screams of its victims.