Radiation Dose of Virtual Colonoscopy
People who are interested in preventing death by colon cancer frequently use virtual colonoscopy screening to detect the disease in its early stages while it can still be treated. Some people, however, fear that the risk of radiation from preventive scans like this is not worth the benefits of getting the scan. This has generally been found to be false because the radiation risk is low whereas the spread of cancer can be fatal.
A new study has shown that it's possible to limit the amount of radiation that the body experiences during the virtual colonoscopy exam but that most doctors don't make use of these methods. The reason for this is because the quality of the scan image is reduced when the lower radiation amounts are used. Patients with concerns about radiation should ask their doctors about this issue.
Learn more about studies related to the radiation risk of colon cancer screening
here.
Question of the Day: Are you concerned about the radiation risk of preventive health screening?photo link
