Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging

The Korean Society of Nuclear Medicine (대한핵의학회)
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Are Medical Personnel Safe from Radiation Exposure from Patient Receiving Radioiodine Ablation Therapy?

갑상선 암의 방사성요오드 치료 시 의료진은 방사선 피폭으로부터 안전한가?

  • Kim, Chang-Guhn (Department of Nuclear Medicine, Wonkwang University School of Medicine) ;
  • Kim, Dae-Weung (Department of Nuclear Medicine, Wonkwang University School of Medicine)
  • 김창근 (원광대학교 의과대학병원 핵의학과) ;
  • 김대응 (원광대학교 의과대학병원 핵의학과)
  • Published : 2009.08.30
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Abstract

Radioiodine ablation therapy has been considered to be a standard treatment for patient with differentiated thyroid cancer after total thyroidectomy. Patients may need to be hospitalized to reduce radiation exposure of other people and relatives from radioactive patients receiving radioiodine therapy. Medical staffs, nursing staffs and technologists sometimes hesitate to contact patients in radioiodine therapy ward. The purpose of this paper is to introduce radiation dosimetry, estimate radiation dose from patients and emphasize the safety of radiation exposure from patients treated with high dose radioiodine in therapy ward. The major component of radiation dose from patient is external exposure. However external radiation dose from these patients treated with typical therapeutic dose of 4 to 8 GBq have a very low risk of cancer induction compared with other various risks occurring in daily life. The typical annual radiation dose without shielding received by patient is estimated to be 5 to 10 mSv, which is comparable with 100 to 200 times effective dose received by chest PA examination. Therefore, when we should keep in mind the general principle of radiation protection, the risks of radiation exposure from patients are low and the medical personnel are considered to be safe from radiation exposure.

Keywords

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