[ RadSafe ] Errors expose patients to radiation
ROY HERREN
royherren2005 at yahoo.com
Tue Sep 27 13:38:02 CDT 2005
The usual prescribed dose for I-125 mono-therapy, Low Dose Rate (LDR) Prostate Cancer Brachytherapy is 145 Gray, which is equal to 14,500 Rad. In this type of therapy the iodine is contained inside of titanium seeds that are laser welder shut and are permanently implanted in the patient's prostate. The mCi per seed and the total number of seeds is dependent on the "plan" which is based on the prostate volume.
Roy Herren
Dale Boyce <daleboyce at charter.net> wrote:
Howard,
I think you have a typo. 75 x 2 x 6 is 900. Some therapy courses are 200
rad to the tumor 5 times a week for 6 weeks.
Dale
----- Original Message -----
From: "howard long"
To: "John Jacobus" ; "Muckerheide, James"
; ;
Sent: Tuesday, September 27, 2005 10:05 AM
Subject: RE: [ RadSafe ] Errors expose patients to radiation
> Usual CT of chest gives 1 cSv (rad, rem).
> 75 rad 2x/wk for 6 weeks to abdomen is usual
> to treat abdominal cancer (4.000 rad)
>
> Howard Long
>
> John Jacobus wrote:
> Jim,
> Medical exposures of 1 Sv are unusual, even in
> therapy. Biological response predicates the need to
> factionate doses. And, yes, the public dose limit is
> exclusive of medical irradiations.
>
> --- "Muckerheide, James" wrote:
>
>> > -----Original Message-----
>> > From: radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl
>> [mailto:radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl] On
>> > Behalf Of John Jacobus
>> > Sent: Monday, September 26, 2005 9:06 AM
>>
>>
>> > Second, using the public limit of 1.0 mSv makes no
>> > sense. The public limit is from man-made souces
>> and
>> > is EXCLUSIVE of medical exposures.
>>
>> Of course, because my physiological response to 1 Sv
>> of medical exposure (or
>> is that just medical over-exposure?) is much less
>> than my response to 1 mSv
>> from "man-made" sources? (As though medical
>> exposure isn't?)
>>
>> Regards, Jim Muckerheide
>> =========================
>>
>> > Third, this is obviously a selected study of
>> reported
>> > incidences only.
>> >
>> > Note: Some people are annoyed by reports of
>> > "overexposures" to nuclear power workers. I have
>> the
>> > annoyance to patient overexposure reports.
>> >
>> > --- Marcel Schouwenburg
>> > wrote:
>> >
>> > > Received through another list (srp)
>> > >
>> > >
>> >
>>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> > > Sunday Herald reports Errors expose patients to
>> > > radiation
>> > >
>> > > http://www.sundayherald.com/51922
>> > >
>> > > MORE than 500 people have been accidentally
>> > > overexposed to radiation in
>> > > hospitals across Scotland in the past 10 years.
>> > > More than four-fifths of them were patients
>> having
>> > > X-rays, CAT
>> > > (computer-assisted tomography) scans or
>> radiation
>> > > therapy, while the rest
>> > > were hospital staff. The accidents were caused
>> by
>> > > human errors, procedural
>> > > mistakes, equipment failures and spillages.
>> > >
>> > > In a few cases, unborn babies were inadvertently
>> > > given large doses of
>> > > radiation far in excess of the safety limits. In
>> > > other instances, people
>> > > were wrongly X-rayed, given repeat scans or
>> badly
>> > > injected.
>> > >
>> > > Hospitals have also lost or mislaid radiation
>> > > sources . All sources are
>> > > meant to be secured to prevent them being stolen
>> by
>> > > terrorists and used in
>> > > "dirty bombs".
>> > >
>> > > The revelations, contained in a new NHS study,
>> have
>> > > worried politicians, who
>> > > are calling for action to cut the number of
>> > > accidents. The government's
>> > > radiation watchdog, the Health Physics Service,
>> says
>> > > it is important to keep
>> > > radiation doses as low as possible, especially
>> for
>> > > children and pregnant
>> > > women.
>> > >
>> > > Radiation is a common tool in medicine
>> throughout
>> > > the developed world.
>> > > X-rays and CAT scans help diagnose a wide range
>> of
>> > > health problems, while
>> > > radioactive chemicals are put in the body as
>> tracers
>> > > and used, externally
>> > > and internally, to destroy cancers. However, all
>> > > radiation is potentially
>> > > dangerous, and extra doses can increase the risk
>> of
>> > > cancer.
>> > >
>> > > Colin Martin, head of the Health Physics Service
>> for
>> > > NHS hospitals in the
>> > > west of Scotland, has analysed 606 incidents
>> > > reported since 1995.
>> > >
>> > > In 423 incidents patients were overexposed to
>> > > radiation, and in 114 cases
>> > > hospital staff were overexposed or contaminated.
>> The
>> > > commonest reason was
>> > > staff error, followed by equipment failure. In
>> more
>> > > than one in 10 cases the
>> > > wrong patient was scanned or treated . Sometimes
>> the
>> > > wrong part of the body
>> > > was X-rayed .
>> > >
>> > > Patients were also given repeat scans because
>> staff
>> > > forgot to change the
>> > > film, machines were left on or computers
>> crashed.
>> > > Staff were contaminated by
>> > > slips while giving injections, or by urine or
>> vomit
>> > > from radiotherapy
>> > > patients.
>> > >
>> > > In a third of the incidents the radiation dose
>> was
>> > > above the annual safety
>> > > limit for the public of one mSv (milliSievert).
>> In
>> > > half a dozen cases the
>> > > doses were more than 20 times in excess of the
>> > > limit. Four of the highest
>> > > exposures were to pregnant women.
>> > >
>> > > In most cases, patients were probably informed
>> about
>> > > the errors at the time.
>> > > Martin, who is based at Gartnavel Royal Hospital
>> in
>> > > Glasgow, pointed out
>> > > that the mistakes represented a very small
>> fraction
>> > > of the million or more
>> > > radiation procedures carried out in the west of
>> > > Scotland every year.
>> > >
>> > > "There is no reason to suspect that the number
>> of
>> > > radiation incidents in the
>> > > west of Scotland is different from that in other
>> > > parts of the UK," he told
>> > > the Sunday Herald.
>> > >
>> > > "By encouraging a more open reporting system,
>> the
>> > > Health Physics Service is
>> > > able to investigate the causes of incidents, so
>> that
>> > > procedures can be
>> > > improved. The risks of any health consequences
>> from
>> > > exposure to radiation at
>> > > these levels are very low."
>> > >
>> > > But Dr Eleanor Scott MSP, health speaker for the
>> > > Scottish Green Party,
>> > > stressed that "any unnecessary exposure to
>> radiation
>> > > should be avoided".
>> > >
>> > > The study is being published in next month's
>> British
>> > > Journal of Radiology.
>> > >
>> > > . . .
>> >
>> > +++++++++++++++++++
>> > "Anyone who has never made a mistake has never
>> tired anything new."
>> > -- Albert Einstein
>> >
>> > -- John
>> > John Jacobus, MS
>> > Certified Health Physicist
>> > e-mail: crispy_bird at yahoo.com
>> >
>> > __________________________________________________
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>>
> === message truncated ===
>
>
> +++++++++++++++++++
> "Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tired anything new."
> -- Albert Einstein
>
> -- John
> John Jacobus, MS
> Certified Health Physicist
> e-mail: crispy_bird at yahoo.com
>
>
>
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