ASRT Responds to New York Times Article

ASRT President Diane Mayo, R.T.(R)(CT), submitted the following letter to the editor of the New York Times in response to a Jan. 24 article on radiation therapy errors.

Dear Editor:

A Jan. 24 article in the New York Times detailed the stories of two cancer patients who were injured during radiation therapy treatments. The American Society of Radiologic Technologists, as the organization that represents radiation therapists, expresses its sincere sympathy to the families and friends of these patients. The treatment errors these patients suffered are tragic. It’s important to remember that they also are extremely rare. No patient should refuse to undergo radiation therapy out of concern about the safety of the procedure.

Radiation therapy is a proven treatment. Used alone or in combination with other treatments, radiation therapy can ease pain, control the spread of cancer and, in many cases, cure patients of their disease. Nearly two-thirds of all U.S. patients diagnosed with cancer receive radiation therapy – more than 1 million patients per year. With each patient receiving an average course of 29 radiation therapy treatments, that means nearly 30 million treatments are delivered annually in the United States.

An entire team of medical professionals works to develop a customized treatment plan for each cancer patient. The radiation therapist is the team member who operates the equipment that delivers the prescribed, targeted dose of radiation to the patient. Registered radiation therapists are skilled specialists who have graduated from a rigorous educational program in radiation therapy and passed a national certification examination that demonstrates their knowledge of radiation biology and safety, patient anatomy and physiology, and patient care. They also must complete continuing education coursework to maintain their registration. The radiation therapist’s goal is to deliver an effective dose of radiation to the tumor while reducing damage to normal tissue that surrounds it.

Although radiation therapists are licensed in New York, 17 other states do not require individuals to hold a license in order to deliver radiation therapy. That’s why the ASRT has lobbied for the past 10 years for the U.S. Congress to pass the Consistency, Accuracy, Responsibility and Excellence in Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy bill (H.R. 3652). The CARE bill would establish minimum educational and certification standards for all health care workers who perform medical imaging examinations or who plan or deliver radiation therapy. The accuracy and quality of these procedures are directly related to the competency and qualifications of the personnel who provide them.

The ASRT believes that errors such as those described in the Jan. 24 article, while rare, must be reported and investigated so that others may learn from them. Rigid controls must be in place at every radiation therapy facility to ensure the accuracy of treatments. Radiation therapy is an important tool in the battle to control, contain and cure cancer. Thanks to the care provided by registered radiation therapists, millions of Americans are cancer survivors.