Opinions/studies on radiation exposure in IR?

[deleted674723]

I am a medical student who is very interested in IR. I have been hanging out with the department and running the student interest group for the specialty. This path is definitely at the top of my list. However, I recently had a very interesting conversation with a retired interventional cardiologist. There's this real haggard looking older man with a big back brace and a walker who is always getting picked up in an ambulance from my apartment building. I never thought much of him until he noticed me studying medical school notes in a common space and asked if I had a second to talk. He told me about his career and said if I could offer you one piece of advice, do not go into any field with regular radiation exposure. He said that he has pancreatic cancer and thyroid nodules from the radiation and his back brace is because he has had three fusions in his spine from wearing 30 lbs of lead every day for 40 years. He said that there is new research coming out of Europe showing how dangerous these fields are for doctors and that it is largely brushed under the rug. Can any of you speak to this? Are there large-scale studies analyzing hazards of working with radiation every day? Is this something you worry about in your career?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Tiger100]

Most IRs and ICs don't do intervention EVERY DAY for 40 YEARS. This guy was probably very busy.

Also radiation is not a risk factor fo pancreatic cancer. It is the risk factor for leukemia, skin cancer, thyroid cancer and few other ones but not pancreatic.

 

[qxrt]

Also be aware that unlike IR, IC docs aren't routinely trained in radiation safety or methods to reduce radiation dose, so chances are that they have a higher radiation exposure dose than IRs typically do. Back problems are potentially a real possibility with the lead, though.

 

[filene23]

I wish more people would research this and talk about it. The techs I talked to said that some other techs got thyroid cancer recently...scary lol. The issue is that there isn't a whole lot of data on it and what scares me is that in 20 years things are gonna come out that will make us regret doing it. In general I feel like more techs I've talked to aren't worried about it, but the docs all are. Not sure why this is, but maybe they know something the techs don't, or it's a mindset thing.

 

[Cognovi]

Lead aprons plus thyroid shield weighs 10-12 lbs. They're not going to break your spine. Wear leaded glasses, protect against cataracts.

Mortality in U.S. Physicians Likely to Perform Fluoroscopy-guided Interventional Procedures Compared with Psychiatrists, 1979 to 2008. RSNA Publications Online

 

[DrfluffyMD]

Radiation hormesis, it’s real.

 

[Smoking Jay Cutler]

I am a medical student who is very interested in IR. I have been hanging out with the department and running the student interest group for the specialty. This path is definitely at the top of my list. However, I recently had a very interesting conversation with a retired interventional cardiologist. There's this real haggard looking older man with a big back brace and a walker who is always getting picked up in an ambulance from my apartment building. I never thought much of him until he noticed me studying medical school notes in a common space and asked if I had a second to talk. He told me about his career and said if I could offer you one piece of advice, do not go into any field with regular radiation exposure. He said that he has pancreatic cancer and thyroid nodules from the radiation and his back brace is because he has had three fusions in his spine from wearing 30 lbs of lead every day for 40 years. He said that there is new research coming out of Europe showing how dangerous these fields are for doctors and that it is largely brushed under the rug. Can any of you speak to this? Are there large-scale studies analyzing hazards of working with radiation every day? Is this something you worry about in your career?

This is a real story?

 

[deleted674723]

This is a real story?

100% real story as in I didn't make this interaction up. However, it is a story. Just an account from this doc.