The Food and Drug Administration disregarded warnings from its scientists about the dangers of CT scans, even as growing use of the powerful radiation contributed to a sevenfold increase in people’s average lifetime dose of diagnostic radiation since 1980.
After a year of keeping quiet, the scientists are planning to publicize their concerns at a Tuesday meeting called by the agency, according to The New York Times.
A single scan has the same amount of radiation as 400 chest X-rays; researchers estimate the number of cancer deaths caused by the radiation exposure at 14,000 people a year.
The Times reports that FDA documents show heated internal dispute over the use of CT scans, including an application agency managers sought to approve by General Electric to allow the scans for colon cancer screenings. FDA scientists repeatedly objected, and the application is still under review.
G.E. is one of the biggest CT scan makers and has been pressing the FDA to approve scans for colon cancer screenings because Medicare officials and private insurers were discussing reimbursement for the procedures, The Times reports.
