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Should we be worried about the amount of radiation we get from mammograms or other imaging we receive from screening or diagnosing health problems?
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Expert Answers
ChrisFlowersMD (Physician - Radiology (Verified) ) - 06 / 25 / 2012
The short answer is no, as mammography uses tiny radiation doses which, when put into the context of natural background radiation we experience every day, is negligible.
However, there have been many scares and concerns about radiation from mammography even though not warranted, from the Dr Oz thyroid shields scare of 2011 to tsunamis causing meltdown of nuclear power plants in Japan. The thyroid association confirmed that there was no concern and recently produced a statement that thyroid shields do not need to be worn for radiation protection when having mammograms. If you are anxious about radiation, then making steps to minimize your exposure by getting high quality mammograms, and seeking out lower dose mammography where possible may be important to you. An example is 3D breast mammography, known as tomosynthesis currently is between 1.6 and 3 times the radiation dose of a regular mammogram, so you may wish to avoid one of those. Avoid having CT scans that are not medically indicated, as it is the skin dose from these scanners that causes radiologists concern. A test like that should be medically indicated, as the results outweigh the risks. A good professional site to read more about this is the 'image wisely' site which encourages radiologists to pledge that they will minimize unnecessary tests and reduce radiation exposure to their patients -http://www.imagewisely.org/Patients
However, there have been many scares and concerns about radiation from mammography even though not warranted, from the Dr Oz thyroid shields scare of 2011 to tsunamis causing meltdown of nuclear power plants in Japan. The thyroid association confirmed that there was no concern and recently produced a statement that thyroid shields do not need to be worn for radiation protection when having mammograms. If you are anxious about radiation, then making steps to minimize your exposure by getting high quality mammograms, and seeking out lower dose mammography where possible may be important to you. An example is 3D breast mammography, known as tomosynthesis currently is between 1.6 and 3 times the radiation dose of a regular mammogram, so you may wish to avoid one of those. Avoid having CT scans that are not medically indicated, as it is the skin dose from these scanners that causes radiologists concern. A test like that should be medically indicated, as the results outweigh the risks. A good professional site to read more about this is the 'image wisely' site which encourages radiologists to pledge that they will minimize unnecessary tests and reduce radiation exposure to their patients -http://www.imagewisely.org/Patients
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