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Computed tomography scans and cancer risk: The latest findings

The potentially harmful effects of ionizing radiation exposure associated with computed tomography (CT) scans, particularly among children, continue to be a subject of concern among both the general public and the medical community. At the same time, there is debate as to how large the risk really is, and what should be done about it. Although some experts believe the potential cancer risks associated with CT scans have been exaggerated in the mainstream news media, it is clear that the rate of such scanning has increased significantly. According to a special report published in Radiology, the collective dose to the US population resulting from medical imaging has increased six-fold in the past 25 years. In addition, the authors note, the number of CT scans has increased more than 10% per year over the past 15 years, and the per capita rate of CT usage is among the highest in the world (second only to Japan). Nevertheless, radiologists and others say that one reason CT scanning is on the rise is because it offers many benefits, including the rapid diagnosis of life-threatening vascular conditions, shorter hospital stays, and more efficient treatment after injury, to name just a few. “As long as an exam is appropriately ordered, the benefit to that individual patient far outweighs any risk,” says Richard L. Morin, PhD, chair of the American College of Radiology Dose Index Registry and chief medical physicist at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida. “There’s no question that you can see disease sooner than ever before and that thousands of lives have been saved.” However, he adds, the radiology community and other researchers have not been able to develop an effective way to measure “benefit.” And now, two recently published studies have added more evidence to the risk side of the equation.