Journal
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RADIATION BIOLOGY
Volume 89, Issue 5, Pages 326-333Publisher
TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD
DOI: 10.3109/09553002.2013.756595
Keywords
Computed tomography (CT); low dose radiation (LDR); stochastic effect; deterministic effect; cancer risk
Funding
- NSFC [30770649, 30970682]
- Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education of China [20100061110070]
- Program for New Century Excellent Talents in University
- Fundamental Research Funds for the Jilin University
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Purpose : With the widespread use of computed tomography (CT), the risks of low-dose radiation from CT have been increasingly highlighted. This study aims to illustrate the CT-induced biological effects and analyze the potential beneficial or harmful outcomes so as to provide radiologists with reasonable advice on CT usage. Materials and methods : The related literature was analyzed according to the topics of stochastic effect, hereditary effect, deterministic effect, accumulative injuries, hormesis and adaptive response; population epidemiology data were also analyzed. Results: CT accounts for 9% of X-ray examinations and approximately 40-67% of medical-related radiation, the dose is within the range of low-dose radiation (LDR). Two opposite viewpoints exist nowadays regarding the biological effects of CT scanning: They are either harmful or harmless. Approximately 0.6% and 1.5% of the cumulative cancer risk could be attributed to diagnostic X-rays in the UK and Germany, respectively. The probability of CT scans induced-cancer is about 0.7% and CT angiography's risk is around 0.13%. It is estimated that approximately 29,000 cancers could be related to CT scans in the USA every year. Meanwhile, another investigation of 25,104 patients who underwent 45,632 CT scans in 4 years showed that the majority of CT-induced cancers were accidents rather than certainties of frequent CT scans. Conclusion : Although the LDR effects of CT are still controversial, the current problems include the high frequency-use and abuse of CT scans, the increase of radiation dose and accumulative dose in high-accuracy CT, and the poor understanding of carcinogenic risks. The underlying biological basis needs further exploring and the ratio of risks and benefits should be considered.
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