Thyroid Cancer Risk Rises With Number of Dental X-Rays
As the frequency of dental X-rays increases, so does the incidence of thyroid cancer, a preliminary study conducted in Kuwait has found. The researchers, who published their work in the medical journal Acta Oncologica, said that other factors, such as the increasing sensitivity of diagnostic tools, may explain part of the amplified thyroid cancer rate%u2014but not all of it. In Britain, thyroid cancer has more than doubled from a rate of 1.4 per 100,000 people in 1975 to 2.9 per 100,000 in 2006.
The research team, made up of scientists from Kuwait and from the cities of Brighton and Cambridge in England, studied 313 thyroid cancer patients in Kuwait and compared them with a similar number of healthy “controls.” Dental treatment in that country is free. Compared to other nations, such as Britain, Kuwait’s thyroid cancer rate is high.
The study is the largest such investigation on this issue to date. The scientists, led by Anjum Memon, a senior lecturer and consultant in public health medicine at Brighton and Sussex Medical School, in England, said their results “should be treated with caution, because the data were necessarily based on self-reporting by the participants. Comprehensive historical dental X-ray records were not available from the clinics.” They encourage additional research that would focus on actual dental X-rays that can have radiation doses estimated.
Memon, whose team was part of a partnership between Brighton and Sussex universities, and Britain’s National Health Service, said he wasn’t surprised by the results because earlier studies had noted a higher risk of thyroid cancer among dentists, dental assistants, and X-ray workers. Moreover, he said, researchers have found a connection between dental X-rays and a heightened risk of brain and salivary gland tumors.
As with the brain and salivary glands, the thyroid gland, located in the neck, is close to the exposure path of dental X-rays. The gland, especially in children, is sensitive to radiation.
Memon suggested that, if his study’s results are confirmed by further research, it would warrant a revision of dental X-ray strategy. Up to this point, dentists have used the procedure freely—to evaluate new patients and to investigate even the smallest dental question. Dentists might have to move to a much more conservative strategy such as that used for chest X-rays.
“Our study,” Memon wrote, “highlights the concern that like chest (or other upper-body) X-rays, dental X-rays should be prescribed when the patient has a specific clinical need, and not as part of routine check-up or when registering with a dentist.
“
The notion that low-dose radiation exposure through dental radiography is absolutely safe needs to be investigated further, as although the individual risk, particularly with modern equipment is likely to be very low, the proportion of the population exposed is high.”
Disclaimer
Featured Doctors
Breast Cancer Testing MRI/ CT Scan Yonkers
Radiology & Diagnostic Imaging | Women's Imaging Center
Lawrence Hospital Center | Outpatient Services
55 Palmer Ave, 1st Floor
Bronxville, NY 10708
Call: (888) 544-1169
Breast Cancer Testing MRI/ CT Scan Yonkers
Radiology & Diagnostic Imaging | Women's Imaging Center
Lawrence Hospital Center | Outpatient Services
55 Palmer Ave, 1st Floor
Bronxville, NY 10708
Call: (888) 544-1169
Radiation Oncologist
Alfred Rosenbaum
Eastchester Center for Cancer Care
2330 Eastchester Road
Bronx, NY 10469
Call: (888) 860-7136
Find a Breast Cancer Surgeon
Nella I. Shapiro
Eastchester Center for Cancer Care
2330 Eastchester Road
Bronx, NY 10469
Call: (888) 860-7136
Cancer Bronx, NY
Alfred Rosenbaum
Eastchester Center for Cancer Care
2330 Eastchester Road
Bronx, NY 10469
Call: (888) 860-7136
Radiation Oncology Services New York
The Farber Center
21 West Broadway
New York, NY 10007
Call: 800-851-3897
Adult Leukemia Treatment NY
Delong Liu, M.D., Ph.D.
Westchester Oncology & Hematology
19 Bradhurst Avenue
Hawthorne, NY 10532
Call: 888-370-4284
Breast Cancer Testing MRI/ CT Scan Yonkers
Radiology & Diagnostic Imaging | Women's Imaging Center
Lawrence Hospital Center | Outpatient Services
55 Palmer Ave, 1st Floor
Bronxville, NY 10708
Call: (888) 544-1169
Colonoscopy Doctors in Texas
The Texas Colonoscopy Centers
The MicroSurgery Institute
,
Call: 888-493-1243
Newnan, Georgia Cancer Treatment Center
Cancer Hospital Near Atlanta
Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Newnan, Georgia
600 Parkway North
Newnan, GA 30265
Call: 800-641-2674
Breast Cancer Surgery New York
The Columbia University Comprehensive Breast Center at Lawrence Hospital
Lawrence Hospital Center for Advanced Surgery
55 Palmer Avenue, First Floor
Bronxville, NY 10708
Call: 888-468-9351
Neurosurgeon Westchester, NY 10530
Bennie Chiles
Westchester Spine and Brain Surgery, PLLC
280 N. Central Ave Suite 235
Hartsdale, NY 10530
Call: 914-332-0396
Oncologist
Michael Castro
Personalized Cancer Medicine, PLLC
1329 Lusitana St. Suite 609
Honolulu, HI 96813
Call: (808) 521-0100
Radiation Oncologist
Alfred Rosenbaum
Eastchester Center for Cancer Care
2330 Eastchester Road
Bronx, NY 10469
Call: (888) 860-7136
Breast Cancer Westchester, NY
Tauseef Ahmed, M.D.
Westchester Oncology & Hematology
19 Bradhurst Avenue
Hawthorne, NY 10532
Call: 888-370-4284
Cancer Alternatives Las Vegas, NV
Daniel Royal
Royal Medical Group
9065 S. Pecos Rd., Ste. 250
Henderson, NV 89074
Call: 888-664-7161
Breast Cancer Radiation Treatment
Helen Pass, M.D.
Lawrence Hospital Center for Advanced Surgery
55 Palmer Avenue
Bronxville, NY 10708
Call: 888-468-9351
Find a Radiation Oncologist
Alfred Rosenbaum
Eastchester Center for Cancer Care
2330 Eastchester Road
Bronx, NY 10469
Call: (888) 860-7136
Cancer Bronx, NY
Alfred Rosenbaum
Eastchester Center for Cancer Care
2330 Eastchester Road
Bronx, NY 10469
Call: (888) 860-7136
Cancer Treatment Center NY
Tauseef Ahmed, M.D.
Westchester Oncology & Hematology
19 Bradhurst Avenue
Hawthorne, NY 10532
Call: 888-370-4284
Chemotherapy Bronx
Fabio Volterra
Eastchester Center for Cancer Care
2330 Eastchester Road
Bronx, NY 10469
Call: (888) 860-7136
Breast Cancer Treatment New York
The Farber Center
21 West Broadway
New York, NY 10007
Call: 800-491-6429
Find a Radiation Oncologist
Alfred Rosenbaum
Eastchester Center for Cancer Care
2330 Eastchester Road
Bronx, NY 10469
Call: (888) 860-7136
Neck Surgery Westchester, NY 10530
Bennie Chiles
Westchester Spine and Brain Surgery, PLLC
280 N. Central Ave Suite 235
Hartsdale, NY 10530
Call: 914-332-0396
Specialities
- Acupuncture
- Alternative Medicine
- Bariatric Surgery
- Breast Cancer
- Breast Surgery
- Cancer Treatment
- Cardiology
- Chiropractic
- Cosmetic Dentistry
- Cosmetic Surgery
- Dentistry
- Dermatology
- Endocrinology
- Facial Enhancement
- Fertility Treatment
- Foot Specialist
- Foot Surgery
- Gastroenterology
- General Surgery
- Geriatrics
- Hair Replacement
- Hematology
- Infectious Diseases
- Infertility Treatment
- Integrative Medicine
- Internal Medicine
- LASIK
- Laser Hair Removal
- Medical Editorial Board
- Medical Spa
- Medical Testing
- Neurology
- Neuropathy
- Nursing Home Services
- Nutrition and Diet
- Obstetrician & Gynecology
- Oncology & Cancer
- Oncology Center
- Ophthalmology
- Orthopedic Surgery
- Orthopedics
- Pain Management
- Physical Therapy
- Plastic Surgery
- Podiatry
- Spinal Decompression
- Spine Surgery
- Sports Medicine
- Stem Cell Therapy
- Thoracic Surgery
- Vascular Surgery
- Vein Surgery
- Weight Loss