CT scans boost cancer risk for children
Source: Agencies |
June 8, 2012, Friday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
Exposing a child to the nuclear radiation from two or three computed tomography (CT) head scans can triple the child's risk of developing brain cancer later in life, according to a 20-year study published yesterday.
The study also found that a child exposed to the cumulative radiation of between five and 10 CT scans is three times more likely than an unexposed child to develop leukemia.
While the absolute risk of cancers developing after a CT scan is still small, the researchers said radiation doses should be kept as low as possible and alternatives to ionizing radiation should be used whenever possible.
"It's well known that radiation can cause cancer but there is an ongoing scientific debate about whether relatively low doses of radiation, like those received from CT scans, do increase cancer risks, and if so the magnitude of those risks," said Amy Berrington de Gonzalez of the National Cancer Institute at the US National Institutes of Health, who worked on the study with scientists from Britain and Canada.
"Ours is the first study to provide direct evidence of a link ... and we were also able to quantify that risk" she said.
CT imaging is a diagnostic technique often used on children with possible head injuries.
The risk of developing cancer comes from the ionising radiation used in CT scans. The risk is higher in children, who are more radiosensitive than adults.
One alternative to a CT scan is ultrasound, which involves no radiation, but is less accurate.
The study also found that a child exposed to the cumulative radiation of between five and 10 CT scans is three times more likely than an unexposed child to develop leukemia.
While the absolute risk of cancers developing after a CT scan is still small, the researchers said radiation doses should be kept as low as possible and alternatives to ionizing radiation should be used whenever possible.
"It's well known that radiation can cause cancer but there is an ongoing scientific debate about whether relatively low doses of radiation, like those received from CT scans, do increase cancer risks, and if so the magnitude of those risks," said Amy Berrington de Gonzalez of the National Cancer Institute at the US National Institutes of Health, who worked on the study with scientists from Britain and Canada.
"Ours is the first study to provide direct evidence of a link ... and we were also able to quantify that risk" she said.
CT imaging is a diagnostic technique often used on children with possible head injuries.
The risk of developing cancer comes from the ionising radiation used in CT scans. The risk is higher in children, who are more radiosensitive than adults.
One alternative to a CT scan is ultrasound, which involves no radiation, but is less accurate.
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