Uses and Risks of Radiation

• 83 oact aminu ated pinated on. S
• Uses and Risks of Radiation

  Radiation can be pretty useful. We use it in our homes, in industry and in medicine. But it's no without its dangers. Using radiation is all about reducing the risks whilst still keeping the benefits.
• Gamma Sources


  • Usually Used in Medical Tracers
• Using radioactive isotopes as medical tracers

  1. Certain radioactive isotopes can be injected into people (or they can just swallow them) and their progress around the body can be followed using an external detector

  2. A computer converts the reading to a display showing where the strongest reading is coming from
• Example of medical tracer

  • Iodine-123 is absorbed by the thyroid gland (just like normal iodine-127), but it gives off radiation which can be detected to indicate whether the thyroid gland is taking in iodine as it should
• Isotopes used as medical tracers

  • They should be gamma emitters (never alpha emitters) so that the radiation passes out of the body without causing much ionisation
  • They should have a short half-life so that the radioactivity inside the patient quickly disappears
• Radiotherapy


  Treating Cancer with Radiation
• Using radiation to treat cancer

  1. Gamma rays are directed carefully and at just the right dosage to kill the cancer cells without damaging too many normal cells

  2. Radiation-emitting implants (usually beta-emitters) can also be put next to or inside tumours
• A fair bit of damage is inevitably done to normal cells, which makes the patient feel very ill. But if the cancer is successfully killed off in the end, then it's worth it.
• Risks of using radiation

  • Radiation can enter living cells and ionise atoms and molecules within them, leading to tissue damage
  • Lower doses tend to cause minor damage without killing the cells, which can give rise to mutant cells which divide uncontrollably (cancer)
  • Higher doses tend to kill cells completely, causing radiation sickness (leading to vomiting, tiredness and hair loss) if a lot of cells all get blasted at once
• For every situation, it's worth considering both the benefits and risks of using radioactive materials.
• Tracers can be used to diagnose life-threatening conditions, while the risk of cancer from one use of a tracer is very small.
• Prolonged exposure to radiation poses future risks and causes many side effects, but many people with cancer choose to have radiotherapy as it may get rid of their cancer entirely. For them, the benefits outweigh the risks.
• Perceived risk


  How risky a person thinks something is. It's not the same as the actual risk of a procedure and the perceived risk can vary from person to person.