Key Issues
Beneficial Uses of Radiation
<< Previous
Benefits of Man-Made Radiation
In the 20th century, mankind learned to use radiation to improve the quality of life. The development of nuclear technology is one of the most significant achievements of the 20th century, according to the National Academy of Engineering. Today, people use nuclear technology in nearly every field and aspect of life—from medicine to manufacturing and construction, to powering common household items, to producing electricity for one of every five U.S. homes and businesses.
Here are some of the many ways radiation benefits us all:
Medicine. According to the Society of Nuclear Medicine, 5,000 nuclear medicine centers in the United States perform nearly 18 million nuclear medicine procedures each year. These procedures prolong and improve the quality of people’s lives. Radioisotopes also are used in 100 million laboratory tests on body fluid and tissue specimens. Today, approximately 500,000 cancer patients in the United States receive radiation treatment at some point in their therapy. Radioisotopes and X-rays aid physicians in diagnosing and treating scores of other diseases.
Nuclear medicine can evaluate the functional performance of various organs. It can do that because different organs use different specific elements more than others. For example, the thyroid uses iodine, bones take up phosphorus and muscles use a lot of potassium.
In nuclear medicine, tiny amounts of a radioactive form of these elements are introduced into a patient’s body. The “radioisotopes” are picked up by specific organs, enabling a special camera to take a picture of how that organ is functioning in striking detail. For example:
In higher doses, radioisotopes also help treat disease. When former President George H.W. Bush and Mrs. Bush suffered from Graves’ disease, a thyroid condition, they were cured by drinking a form of radioactive iodine that concentrates naturally in the thyroid and destroys the diseased portion. This treatment is so successful that it virtually has replaced thyroid surgery.
Radioactive iodine’s widespread use in therapy for thyroid cancer results in a lower recurrence rate than drug therapy and voids potentially fatal side effects, such as the destruction of bone marrow.
Sealed sources of radiation placed inside the body, or radiation directed from sources externally, are effective in treating various cancers, including prostate tumors.
Hospitals also use radiation to sterilize materials, thereby helping prevent the spread of diseases without making the materials radioactive. Because of its penetrating power, radiation is particularly suitable for sterilizing such supplies as sutures, syringes, catheters and hospital clothing, since these supplies are packed in hermetically sealed packages prior to sterilization. Heat cannot sterilize these materials because it would destroy them.
Benefits of Man-Made Radiation
In the 20th century, mankind learned to use radiation to improve the quality of life. The development of nuclear technology is one of the most significant achievements of the 20th century, according to the National Academy of Engineering. Today, people use nuclear technology in nearly every field and aspect of life—from medicine to manufacturing and construction, to powering common household items, to producing electricity for one of every five U.S. homes and businesses.
Here are some of the many ways radiation benefits us all:
Medicine. According to the Society of Nuclear Medicine, 5,000 nuclear medicine centers in the United States perform nearly 18 million nuclear medicine procedures each year. These procedures prolong and improve the quality of people’s lives. Radioisotopes also are used in 100 million laboratory tests on body fluid and tissue specimens. Today, approximately 500,000 cancer patients in the United States receive radiation treatment at some point in their therapy. Radioisotopes and X-rays aid physicians in diagnosing and treating scores of other diseases.
Nuclear medicine can evaluate the functional performance of various organs. It can do that because different organs use different specific elements more than others. For example, the thyroid uses iodine, bones take up phosphorus and muscles use a lot of potassium.
In nuclear medicine, tiny amounts of a radioactive form of these elements are introduced into a patient’s body. The “radioisotopes” are picked up by specific organs, enabling a special camera to take a picture of how that organ is functioning in striking detail. For example:
- Myocardial perfusion imaging maps blood flow to the heart, allowing physicians to see whether a patient has heart disease and to determine the most effective course of treatment.
- Bone scans can detect the spread of cancer six to 18 months earlier than X-rays.
- Kidney scans are much more sensitive than X-rays or ultrasounds in fully evaluating kidney function.
- Imaging with radioactive technetium-99m can help diagnose bone infections at the earliest possible stage.
- Laboratory techniques using radioactivity can detect underactive thyroids in newborn babies, making prompt treatment possible and saving many children from mental retardation.
In higher doses, radioisotopes also help treat disease. When former President George H.W. Bush and Mrs. Bush suffered from Graves’ disease, a thyroid condition, they were cured by drinking a form of radioactive iodine that concentrates naturally in the thyroid and destroys the diseased portion. This treatment is so successful that it virtually has replaced thyroid surgery.
Radioactive iodine’s widespread use in therapy for thyroid cancer results in a lower recurrence rate than drug therapy and voids potentially fatal side effects, such as the destruction of bone marrow.
Sealed sources of radiation placed inside the body, or radiation directed from sources externally, are effective in treating various cancers, including prostate tumors.
Hospitals also use radiation to sterilize materials, thereby helping prevent the spread of diseases without making the materials radioactive. Because of its penetrating power, radiation is particularly suitable for sterilizing such supplies as sutures, syringes, catheters and hospital clothing, since these supplies are packed in hermetically sealed packages prior to sterilization. Heat cannot sterilize these materials because it would destroy them.
