have been accused of ignoring warnings about the overuse of CT scans to check for colon cancer. Government experts have waited for a year for the FDA to respond to concerns presented to the agency, but are now planning to address the issue at a public meeting called by the FDA for March30-31.

 

The worry stems from the sevenfold rise in the lifetime dose of diagnostic radiation since 1980. In the early 1980s, about three million CT scans were performed each year. Now, the number is 70 million a year.

 

One CT scan can deliver as much radiation as 400 chest x-rays. The high dose of radiation is one reason why 14,000 people die every year of radiation-induced cancers.

 

Some medical professional groups have called for using alternative methods to CT scans to avoid exposing patients to excessive radiation levels.

 

Writing in The New York Times, Gardiner Harris noted that, “doctors, patient advocacy groups and manufacturers often endorse positions that are in their economic self-interest. Radiologists, who often own and use CT machines, for instance, often endorse their use; while gastroenterologists, who often own and use camera scopes, often favor their own methods. Patient groups often get financing from drug and device makers, or physician-specialty groups.”

-Noel Brinkerhoff, David Wallechinsky

 

Scientists Say F.D.A. Ignored Radiation Warnings (by Gardiner Harris, New York Times)

FDA Moves to Reduce Radiation Exposure from Medical Imaging (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)