"These mistakes and the failure of hospitals to quickly identify them offer a rare look into the vulnerability of patient safeguards at a time when increasingly complex, computer-controlled devices are fundamentally changing medical radiation, delivering higher doses in less time with greater precision than ever before.
Serious radiation injuries are still infrequent, and the new equipment is undeniably successful in diagnosing and fighting disease. But the technology introduces its own risks: it has created new avenues for error in software and operation, and those mistakes can be more difficult to detect. As a result, a single error that becomes embedded in a treatment plan can be repeated in multiple radiation sessions."
Grossman & Moore, PLLC has successfully handled a radiation overdose case in western Kentucky. The injured victim was diagnosed with a tumor and underwent radiation therapy that resulted in severe burns and ultimately an otherwise unnecessary colostomy.
Unfortunately, these types of cases exist across the country in a largely unregulated field. More than 300 patients in four hospitals — and possibly many more — were overradiated by powerful CT scans used to detect strokes, government health officials announced late last year. The overdoses were first discovered at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, a major Los Angeles hospital, where 260 patients received up to eight times as much radiation as intended.
If you or your family member has been the victim of excessive radiation, contact us for a free consultation.
New York Times Radiation Articles
