What is radiation sickness or poisoning? Radiation poisoning is illness
and symptoms resulting from exposure to high doses radiation. Sometimes
the exposure is accidental or intentional (as in radiation therapy).Your
daily treatments will probably be scheduled Monday through Friday,
allowing you to rest on weekends. Your daily appointment schedule will
be as convenient for you as possible. Your radiation therapist will
notify you of any holidays on which you will not receive treatments.
Will radiation therapy make me nauseated? Radiation therapy effects
only those areas being treated. If the patient is receiving radiation
therapy to their abdomen then the patient may experience some nausea
from their treatment. There are excellent medications available now that
almost always allow good control of this nausea. Often times the doctor
finds the nauseated radiation patient is nauseated from chemotherapy,
other medications (most commonly pain medicines) or the flu and not the
radiation treatment.
What are the symptoms of radiation poisoning? The effects of
radiation sickness are nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, Skin burns
(redness, blistering) Weakness, fatigue, exhaustion, fainting,
dehydration, inflammation of exposed areas, hair loss, genetic mutation,
cancerous growth, ulceration of the oral mucosa, ulceration of the
esophagus, stomach or intestines, vomiting blood, bloody stool, bleeding
from the nose, mouth, gums, and rectum, bruising and sloughing of skin,
open sores on the skin, and death.Possible terrorist events could
involve introducing radioactive material into the food or water supply,
using explosives (like dynamite) to scatter radioactive materials
(called a dirty bomb), bombing or destroying a nuclear facility, or
exploding a small nuclear device.If Dr. John Gwozdz is your radiation
oncologist, you will see him at least once a week during the course of
your treatment so that he can see how well you are tolerating the
therapy.
What amount of radiation is safe? Safe means free from danger or
risk. Safer means more nearly free from risk than something else. Safest
means the most nearly free from risk than other things under
discussion. Even the safest car is not safe (risk-free). And even the
smallest exposure to ionizing radiation is not safe (risk-free), with
respect to cancer and inherited afflictions. In other words, there is no
"threshold" dose-level below which all cancer-risk from radiation
disappears.Potassium iodide (KI) should only be taken in a radiation
emergency that involves the release of radioactive iodine, such as an
accident at a nuclear power plant or the explosion of a nuclear bomb. A
dirty bomb most likely will not contain radioactive iodine. A person who
is internally contaminated with radioactive iodine may experience
thyroid disease later in life.
Q5) What other Federal Agencies are involved in radiation safety?
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for
issuing general radiation guidance to Federal Agencies. Additionally,
basic information about radiation is available on the EPA web site ( The
U.S. Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) has
regulations on protecting workers from radiation in the workplace
(Nearly all cancer patients receiving radiation therapy need to take
special care of themselves to protect their health and help the
treatment to be successful. Follow the eating and skin care tips already
listed, and be sure to get plenty of rest. Sleep as often as you need
to. Your body will use a lot of extra energy while you are receiving
radiation treatment. In general, take extra special care of yourself
during this tiring and stressful time.Your daily treatments will
probably be scheduled Monday through Friday, allowing you to rest on
weekends.
How often will I see my radiation oncologist? If Dr. John Gwozdz is
your radiation oncologist, you will see him at least once a week during
the course of your treatment so that he can see how well you are
tolerating the therapy. Usually the visit will take only a few minutes.
There is always a radiation doctor available anytime you need to see
one. RETURN TO TOP OF PAGEMany patients have no side effects at all, but
some patients do have side effects associated with the treatment area.
Side effects vary from patient to patient and will depend mostly on the
treatment dose, the part of the body that is treated and the patient's
general health before treatment. The most common side effects are modest
fatigue and some skin redness in the treatment area.
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