Facts and Controversies About Radiation Exposure, Part 2: Low-Level Exposures and Cancer Risk

In this 2-part article, the authors address the need to put in perspective the risks of radiation exposure in the rapidly changing field of radiology, considering the current state of knowledge of effects at low levels. The article is based on the content of the refresher course RC 516 presented at the Radiological Society of North America’s 2005 annual meeting. In part 1, the authors presented a brief review of epidemiologic studies, a discussion of typical radiation doses experienced in medicine by both patients and professionals, and the description of practical approaches to reduce unnecessary exposures. Part 2 addresses a special concern for the unborn and discusses advisory and regulatory cancer risk estimates based mainly on epidemiologic studies. The limitations of epidemiologic studies at low-level exposures and recent new findings in radiobiology, some of which are summarized, challenge the notion that any amount of radiation causes adverse effects.

Key Words: Radiation exposure, radiation protection, stochastic effects of radiation, deterministic effects of radiation, radiation biology, radiation epidemiology