Scared cause I've had too many cat scans and X-rays don't wanna get cancer

[AnxiousA1]

I hope any of you are still on this board to help me out, like you I am scared to death from the 2 catscans I have had, I can't eat sleep or do anything. I can't even enjoy my baby daughter :( I keep feeling like I am going to leave her soon all because of an unnecessary stupid tests!!!!!

I had a head and neck ct w/wo contrast for an inflammed parotid gland 4 years ago.

Now, I was suffering from lightheadedness and migraines and I got a Ct Angio of the head and neck which has catastrophic radiation doses. I am so sooooo scared and I cant do anything but thing that I am going to get cancer because of this I am so scared. I am only 33 years old. The worst feeling of all is knowing the damage is done and I cant do anything about it. Please help me I need someone to talk to.

[Fishmanpa]

I've seen this fear many times on the boards. Spouting statistics and facts doesn't relieve the fear even though they more than reassuring.

Here's one real life fact for you. I'm a H&N cancer survivor. I had x-rays, CT scans etc throughout my life. My cancer wasn't caused by that. And guess what they treated me with? Yep... RADIATION. 5 days a week for 6 weeks. Enough that it burned the skin off my neck and burned out my saliva glands and some other wonderful side effects. And every day before treatment, the TOMO machine did a CT scan to line up the radiation to hit the right spots. I had 30 CT scans in 6 weeks! I've been cancer free for two years!

There's no rhyme or reason to who gets cancer. Of course eating right, exercising and not smoking lessen the chances. Hopefully, you'll overcome this irrational fear. There are no documented cases where a CT scan was the cause of someone's cancer.... none.... In fact, it's due to these tests that many lives have been saved!

Positive thoughts

[swajj]

I think we need to be cautious about the amount of radiation we expose ourselves to. I had get trust in my old doctor and when I wanted a scan of my head done because of bad headaches he said that I shouldn't expose myself to radiaton unless it was necessary. When you suffer with HA there is a tendency to want endless scans done for reassurance. There is no point worrying about the scans we have already had done but we should keep radiation in mind before making the decision to have any future scans done unless they are considered absolutely necessary. That's my opinion anyway.

[Samilia]

I was just having this same worry. I have health anxiety and for years i was convinced i had a brain tumor, pulmony embolism in the lungs etc, ive had 3 ct scans on my brain, 4 on my chest!! Plus zillions of xrays all over my body. And my mum died of breast camcer which concerns me more about the chest cts ive had. I was just sitting here begining to panic... so i started to google and came across this...

(Link missing)
Hope it helps ease anyone else who comes across this thread.

---------- Post added at 13:30 ---------- Previous post was at 13:28 ----------

Just posting to get my piunts up to 10 so i can post the link i tried to put in my previous comment

---------- Post added at 13:41 ---------- Previous post was at 13:30 ----------

According to daily mail :

"Radiation from X-rays and CT scans DOESN'T cause cancer, leading oncologist*declares

Countless scientific studies have debated the issue - does radiation from X-rays and CT scans cause cancer?

At very high doses the evidence is clear, scientists say - the answer is yes.

But one oncologist from Loyola University in Chicago now points to 'serious flaws' in the theory, when considering everyday exposure to radiation during medical scans.

Dr James Welsh said the reliance of past research on unproven statistical models is important.

Although radiation is known to cause cancer at high doses and high-dose rates, no data have ever unequivocally demonstrated the induction [start] of cancer following exposure to low doses and dose rates,' said Dr Welsh, and his co-author Dr Jeffry Siegel.

They argue studies that have identified a link between medical imaging and cancer, typically use a model known as 'linear no-threshold' (LNT).

In LNT, the well-established cancer-causing effects of high doses of radiation are simply extrapolated downward in a straight line to low doses.

The LNT model assumes there is no safe dose of radiation, no matter how small.*

But although LNT is used by regulators around the world, the model is 'of questionable validity, utility and applicability for estimation of cancer risks,' Dr Welsh and Dr Siegel said.*

Contrary to the LNT model, there is compelling evidence that the human body has evolved the ability to repair damage from low-dose radiation.*

For example, the mutation rate caused by low-dose background radiation in the environment is 2.5 million times lower than the rate of spontaneous mutations in the body.*

So even if the LNT model were true, the small increase in mutations caused by low-dose radiation from medical imaging would be unlikely to overwhelm the body's defences

They add studies purporting to find a cancer link to medical imaging radiation have other flaws besides the questionable LNT model.*

For example, Dr Welsh and Dr Siegel highlight, two recent studies suggested possible increased cancer risks from low-radiation doses associated with paediatric CT scans.*

But these cancers are likely due to the medical conditions that prompted the need for a CT scan, rather than the radiation exposure, the pair noted.

While many people focus on the apparent risks of radiation in medical imaging, 'the more significant and actual risks associated with not undergoing an imaging procedure or undergoing a more invasive exploratory surgery are generally being ignored in both the scientific literature and the popular media,' they added.

The views first appeared in the journal Technology in Cancer Research & Treatment."