Shots - Health Blog X-Ray Tests May Heighten Cancer Risk In
Susceptible Women Originally published on Fri September 7, 2012
10:53 am Researchers report that women with genetic mutations
that put them at dramatically increased risk of developing
breast cancer may also face a heightened risk from radiation
used during medical screening and diagnosis. The imaging tools
that help doctors identify disease, injury or damage to the body
have long been known to carry some risk of cancer, in large part
because ionizing radiation can damage the genetic material in
the body. If the body is unable to repair that DNA damage, and
if cells are changed permanently, they may go on to produce
abnormal cells when they divide. When that occurs, these cells
may become cancerous. Scientists had postulated that women with
the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genetic mutations might be especially
vulnerable, as these genes are involved in the repair of DNA
breaks, which can be caused by radiation from X-rays or CT
scans. In the study, published in th