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20 March 2010

Answer to Question #819 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"

Category: Radiation Workers

The following question was answered by an expert in the appropriate field:

My wife has worked as a radiographer for the last 25 years. She developed a Hurthle cell adenoma of the thyroid which was immediately excised. Is there any evidence that long-term exposure to low-level ionising radiation will have increased her suseptibility to developing this rarer type of cancer?

Hurthle cell carcinoma is not a common disease and is not broken out separately in the literature on the induction of thyroid cancer. The thyroid cancer carcinogenesis literature deals primarily with papillary and follicular thyroid cancers. In addition to studies on the Atomic Bomb survivors, studies have been done of the induction of thyroid cancer in children treated with x rays for ringworm of the scalp. There were no adult patients in these studies. Thyroid cancer induction has also been studied in teenagers treated with superficial x rays for acne. Again, these studies were not done with an adult population. It is difficult, if not impossible, to give definitive answers to the causative agents for cancer induction, which is a complex process. You should consult an endocrinologist/nuclear medicine physician with vast experience in treating thyroid cancer who may be able to provide additional information. Jean St. Germain, CHP

Answer posted on 29 March 2001. The information and material posted on this Web site is intended as general reference information only. Specific facts and circumstances may alter the concepts and applications of materials and information described herein. The information provided is not a substitute for professional advice and should not be relied upon in the absence of such professional advice specific to whatever facts and circumstances are presented in any given situation. Answers are correct at the time they are posted on the Web site. Be advised that over time, some requirements could change, new data could be made available, or Internet links could change. For answers that have been posted for several months or longer, please check the current status of the posted information prior to using the responses for specific applications.