ANA Discussion Forum
Treatment Options => Radiation / Radiosurgery => Topic started by: mandy721 on January 24, 2010, 12:01:24 pm
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I am not sure if this is the right place to post this, but after reading it I thought it important enough to share here. There is a lot to think about and it left me coming back to the message that it is vital to go to hospitals and surgeons that do a lot of any procedure, whether it be surgery or radiotherapy.
Here is the link to the article -http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/24/health/24radiation.html?hp .
The main theme is about a number of cases where things went horribly wrong with radiation treatments due to equipment and software malfunctions, and failures by staff to detect the problems. It is hard reading, but offers a look at a topic that is generally out of the public view.
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I saw this too. The case the article focused on is particularly dismaying. It is fortunately not very common, and the really dire consequences are even rarer, but the risk of a mistake is there nonetheless. I agree that it makes a good argument for seeking out a treatment team that has solid experience with the procedures, and knows enough to avoid this kind of error.
Steve
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I also read that NYT article this morning and thought about posting the link ... but chickened out because I thought it might be too scary. I'm glad that Miranda was more courageous, because it really is important to know as much as possible about these things. As the article mentions, the risk of bad things happening is quite small.
Catherine (JerseyGirl 2)
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What a horrifying story!
It also backs up the intuition I had when I was deciding on where to get treated. Realizing the seriousness of the situation, I was determined to be treated by the facility and doctor I deemed to be the best.I had decided on CK and it seemed to me like Stanford was the best facility in the U.S. for CK. Fortunately, they were in my insurance network of preferred providers.
No matter what type of treatment you W&W-ers ultimately choose (if you must), please don't shortchange yourself and choose a facility and doctor out of convenience. Travel if you must. This is your brain we're talking about! Choose carefully. Research, research, research. It may be the most important decision you ever make in your life.
Sincerely,
TW
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Miranda ~
Thanks for the link.
I read the entire N.Y. Times story and was dismayed that these errors, with their tragic results, occurred. I could write paragraphs on what I viewed as the causes but the majority stemmed from human error; incompetence, staffing shortages and inattentiveness on the part of doctors and hospital staff that resulted in a cascade of mistakes, ending with the harming and sometimes the death of the patient. That is unacceptable. Fortunately, most of the mistakes seem to have been corrected, such as having a fail-safe mechanism embedded in the software. I noticed that, statistically, the number of glitches (albeit, sometimes with deadly results) are a tiny percentage of the total Linear treatments administered each year. That should be noted. Of course, if you're one of the people that are the victim of a radiation mistake and suffer terrible harm - or death - statistics are of little comfort, I know.
In my experience with the Linear accelerator system, my neurosurgeon and the radiation oncologist he worked with spent most of a day 'mapping' my treatment, using just-taken MRI and CT scans as a guide. I had full confidence in both men. In fact, the radiation oncologist said, just before I was to begin the treatments, that he had programmed the radiation 'dosage' low enough to be effective but that he doubted I would even lose any hair at the radiation site..and I didn't. I agree that research is paramount but of course, human error can never be totally removed from this kind of procedure. I don't view this N.Y. Times piece as scary, just a cautionary tale that we can't take our treatment for granted. Still, we have little choice but to trust the doctors and the technicians at the facility we use. We have many members that have undergone CK, GK and FSR successfully. Their experience should help keep the risks of radiation, which are quite real, in perspective.
Jim