Development of the automated system for assessing radiation risks to the population of the Russian Federation based on the data of radiation-hygienic certification of territories

The assessment of the radiation risk based on the data of the radiation-hygienic passports of the territories makes it possible to give a brief quantitative characteristic of the negative impact of sources of ionizing radiation on the health of the population of various regions of the Russian Federation at the population level. The calculation of individual indicators of radiation risk for the population of particular region of the Russian Federation is a time-consuming task that requires referring to radiation-hygienic passports of territories for particular years. Therefore, the purpose of the performed work was to develop specialized software designed to assess the indicators of radiation risk to the population of the Russian Federation according to the data of the radiation-hygienic certification system of territories. Automation of the calculation of radiation risk allows not only to simplify the calculation procedure but also to carry out a spatial-temporal analysis of risk in dynamics for different regions of the Russian Federation over long periods. The methodological basis for the software development is guideline MR 2.6.1.0145-19 “Calculation of radiation risk according to the data contained in the radiation-hygienic passports of the territories to provide a comprehensive comparative assessment of the radiation safety status of the population of the subjects of the Russian Federation”. To achieve the set goal, two computer programs were developed: 1) to automate the process of calculating radiation risk based on the information contained in the radiation-hygienic passports of territories, a computer program “Calculation of radiation risk indicators according to RGPT data”; 2) for the spatial visualization of the calculations, a specialized geographic information system “Radiation risks of the population of the Russian Federation according to radiation-hygienic certification data”. The computer programs developed in the course of the work allow an automated calculation of radiation risk based on the data of radiation-hygienic passports of territories, visualize the spatially distributed results of calculating radiation risk, carry out a preliminary assessment of the state of radiation safety, based on the data contained in radiation-hygienic passports of territories using radiation risk indicators.

Common sources of radiations in a medical environment

Use of radiation is now a days so common in most of the tertiary care hospitals for diagnostic and therapeutic purpose. The ionizing radiation provides many benefits in both diagnostic as well as therapeutic interventions, but they are also potential harmful. Radiation risks, exposure and mitigation strategies should always be in mind while using to an individual (public, radiation worker, and patient) and the environment should not exceed the prescribed safe limits. Regular monitoring of hospital area and radiation workers is mandatory to assess the quality of radiation safety. This review article emphasis on radiation risks, exposure and prevention and treatment strategies.

Race and Ethnic Group Dependent Space Radiation Cancer Risk Predictions

Future space missions by national space agencies and private industry, including space tourism, will include a diverse makeup of crewmembers with extensive variability in age, sex, and race or ethnic groups. The relative risk (RR) model is used to transfer epidemiology data between populations to estimate radiation risks. In the RR model cancer risk is assumed to be proportional to background cancer rates and limited by other causes of death, which are dependent on genetic, environmental and dietary factors that are population dependent. Here we apply the NSCR-2020 model to make the first predictions of age dependent space radiation cancer risks for several U.S. populations, which includes Asian-Pacific Islanders (API), Black, Hispanic (white and black), and White (non-Hispanic) populations. Results suggest that male API and Hispanic populations have the overall lowest cancer risks, while White females have the highest risk. Blacks have similar total cancer rates as Whites, however their reduced life expectancy leads to modestly lower lifetime radiation risks compared to Whites. There are diverse tissue specific cancer risk ranking across sex and race, which include sex specific organ risks, females having larger lung, stomach, and urinary-bladder radiation risks, and males having larger colon and brain risks.

Race and Ethnic Group Dependent Space Radiation Cancer Risk Predictions

Future space missions by national space agencies and private industry, including space tourism, will include a diverse makeup of crewmembers with extensive variability in age, sex, and race or ethnic groups. The relative risk (RR) model is used to transfer epidemiology data between populations to estimate radiation risks. In the RR model cancer risk is assumed to be proportional to background cancer rates and limited by other causes of death, which are dependent on genetic, environmental and dietary factors that are population dependent. Here we apply the NSCR-2020 model to make the first predictions of age dependent space radiation cancer risks for several U.S. populations, which includes Asian-Pacific Islanders (API), Black, Hispanic (white and black), and White (non-Hispanic) populations. Results suggest that male API and Hispanic populations have the overall lowest cancer risks, while White females have the highest risk. Blacks have similar total cancer rates than Whites, however their reduced life expectancy leads to modestly lower lifetime radiation risks compared to Whites. There are diverse tissue specific cancer risk ranking across sex and race, which include sex specific organ risks, female’s having larger lung, stomach, and urinary-bladder radiation risks, and male’s having larger colon and brain risks.

Radiation concerns in frequent flyer patients: Should imaging history influence decisions about recurrent imaging?

Radiation risks from diagnostic imaging have captured the attention of patients and medical practitioners alike, yet it remains unclear how these considerations can best be incorporated into clinical decision making. This manuscript presents a framework to consider these issues in a potentially at-risk population, the so called “frequent flyer” patients undergoing a large amount of recurrent imaging over time. Radiation risks from the low-dose exposures of diagnostic imaging are briefly reviewed, as applied to recurrent exposures. Some scenarios are then explored in which it may be helpful to incorporate knowledge of a patient’s imaging history. There is no simple or uniformly applicable approach to these challenging and often nuanced clinical decisions. The complexity and variability of the underlying disease states and trajectories argues against alerting mechanisms based on a simple cumulative dose threshold. Awareness of imaging history may instead be beneficial in encouraging physicians and patients to take the long view, and to identify those populations of frequent flyers that might benefit from alternative imaging strategies.