Radiation exposure is thought to be a significant occupational hazard for radiologists, but according to a new study published online in the journal, Radiology, the danger is diminishing

Studies like these are important for evaluating radiation protection measures and understanding the long-term effects of protracted exposure and low level radiation. Historically, similar research in the U.S. analyzed smaller data sets and only reflected earlier time periods — the last one ended in 1975.

For the current study, researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) used records from the American Medical Association Physician Masterfile, which is a database that includes current and historical data for over 1.4 million physicians, residents and medical students in the U.S.
They compared cancer incidence and mortality rates between 43,763 radiologists and 64,990 psychiatrists who graduated from medical school between 1916 and 2006. Psychiatrists were selected for the comparison group because they are unlikely to have had occupational radiation exposure.

They found that male radiologists who graduated after 1940 had a better health profile than the psychiatrists. The death rates for radiologists due to all causes was lower and there was no evidence of increased mortality from radiation-related conditions such as cancer or cardiovascular disease.

However, the radiologists who graduated before 1940 had higher death rates from conditions including myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndrome, which are known to be associated with radiation exposure.

The oldest radiologists had higher death rates due to melanoma and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. They also had a higher risk of cerebrovascular disease, which has been found to be connected to low to moderate radiation exposure.

The researchers assume that the better health of recent radiology graduates is because of the improvements made in radiation protection and monitoring as well as better equipment safety.

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