Long-term Cancer Risk of CT Scans

&AdvAnces Insights April 15, 2010 Studies examine radiation exposure, long-term cancer risks of CT scans What the news means for you Scott D. Stevens, MD Radiology Two recent studies concerning radiation exposure associated with computed... More

&AdvAnces Insights April 15, 2010 Studies examine radiation exposure, long-term cancer risks of CT scans What the news means for you Scott D. Stevens, MD Radiology Two recent studies concerning radiation exposure associated with computed tomography (CT) scans have raised concerns about longterm cancer risks. Both studies were published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. CT scans are an important diagnostic tool helping physicians evaluate trauma, belly pain, chronic headaches and other ailments. The fast, noninvasive CT scan offers a painless way to get three-dimensional images of the inside of the body. Use of the technology since it was introduced in 1980 has jumped from about 3 million to 70 million in 2007. A CT scan exposes a patient to much higher doses of radiation than does a conventional X-ray. For example, one chest CT scan results in more than 100 times the radiation dose of a routine chest X-ray. Researchers are concerned that wit Less