2010年3月11日 星期四

Radiactive treatment is no dangerous!! Thyroid cancer

Radioactive Iodine I-131 (also called Radioiodine I-131) therapy is a treatment for an overactive thyroid, a condition called hyperthyroidism. Hyperthyroidism can be caused by Graves' disease, in which the entire thyroid gland is overactive, or by nodules within the gland which are locally overactive in producing too much thyroid hormone.
Nuclear medicine is a branch of medical imaging that uses small amounts of radioactive material to diagnose or treat a variety of diseases, including many types of cancers, heart disease and certain other abnormalities within the body.
The thyroid is a gland in the neck that produces two hormones that regulate all aspects of the body's metabolism, the chemical process of converting food into energy. When a thyroid gland is overactive, it produces too much of these hormones, accelerating the metabolism.
You will be able to return home following radioactive iodine treatment, but you should avoid prolonged, close contact with other people for several days, particularly pregnant women and small children. The majority of the radioactive iodine that has not been absorbed leaves the body during the first two days following the treatment, primarily through the urine. Small amounts will also be excreted in saliva, sweat, tears, vaginal secretions, and feces.
If your work or daily activities involve prolonged contact with small children or pregnant women, you will want to wait several days after your treatment to resume these activities. Patients with infants at home should arrange for care to be provided by another person for the first several days after treatment. Your radiologist can be more specific for your given situation, but usually this time period is only two to four days.
Your treatment team will give you a list of other precautions to take following your treatment with I-131. The following guidelines comply with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission:
Use private toilet facilities, if possible, and flush twice after each use.
Bathe daily and wash hands frequently.
Drink a normal amount of fluids.
Use disposable eating utensils or wash your utensils separately from others.
Sleep alone and avoid prolonged intimate contact. Brief periods of close contact, such as handshaking and hugging, are permitted.
Launder your linens, towels, and clothes daily at home, separately. No special cleaning of the washing machine is required between loads.
Do not prepare food for others that requires prolonged handling with bare hands.
If you breast-feed, you must stop.
You should avoid becoming pregnant for about one year after treatment.
You must be sure you are not pregnant before receiving I-131. Many facilities require a pregnancy test within 24 hours prior to giving I-131 in all women of child-bearing age who have not had a surgical procedure to prevent pregnancy.
Patients who need to travel immediately after radioactive iodine treatment are advised to carry a letter of explanation from their physician. Radiation detection devices used at airports and federal buildings may be sensitive to the radiation levels present in patients up to three months following treatment with I-131. Depending on the amount of radioactivity administered during your treatment, your endocrinologist or radiation safety officer may recommend continued precautions for up to several weeks after treatment.
Radioiodine should never be used in a patient who is pregnant. I-131 given during pregnancy can damage the baby's thyroid gland. When given to a nursing mother, radioactive iodine can reach a baby through her breast milk. Most physicians feel that this procedure should not be used in women who are breastfeeding unless they are willing to cease breastfeeding their newborn. Also, pregnancy should be delayed until at least six to 12 months after I-131 treatment, since the treatment exposes the ovaries to radiation.
Women who have not yet reached menopause should fully discuss the use of I-131 with their physician.
Radioactive iodine (I-131) is an isotope created from iodine to emit radiation for medical use. When a small dose of I-131 is swallowed, it is absorbed into the bloodstream in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and concentrated from the blood by the thyroid gland, where it begins destroying the gland's cells.
Radioactive iodine I-131 may also be used to treat thyroid cancer.

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