FL cancer patients exposed to radiation error
Patient Safety Monitor Alert, April 6, 2005
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An improperly installed radiation machine exposed dozens of patients at a Florida cancer treatment center to radiation levels 50% stronger than needed, reports the Associated Press.
Twelve of the 77 patients affected have died since the error, which was first detected on March 7 by physicists from the federal Radiological Physics Center. However, the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute in Tampa didn't acknowledge the error until April 1.
"Some people were having side effects, but overall, they were within the normal range of side effects of radiation treatments," said William Dalton, director of the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center. "We aren't seeing unanticipated levels of side effects."
However, it could take three months to a year for side effects-including headaches and speech and memory loss-to appear, he said.
To read the complete Associated Press article, click here.
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