MiscellaneousBrain and Neck Tumors Among Physicians Performing Interventional Procedures
Section snippets
Methods
The present study included data from 31 interventional physicians with brain and neck cancer. We previously published an initial first small report and a subsequent update as a “letter to the editor.”15, 16 The present study reports the most updated data on previously published cases gathered since publication and information on 13 additional reported cases transmitted to us during the previous few months.
For all cases, where possible, we endeavored to obtain the baseline data, including age,
Results
The demographic variables (age, gender, specialty, and years in practice) and tumor type and clinical outcomes are summarized in Table 1. The age range of the patients was 49 to 67 years (median 54, mean 54.7 ± 7.1). Only 1 of the patients in the present series of malignancies was a woman.
The most common offending tumor type was glioblastoma multiforme, identified in 17 of 31 cases (55%), with 2 cases of astrocytoma and 5 of meningioma.
A striking finding was the disproportionate occurrence of
Discussion
The present observations have expanded those of recent previous reports of brain and neck cancer in interventional physicians.13, 14, 15, 16 Occupational radiation exposure and the orthopedic complications from wearing the heavy leaded aprons necessary to limit such exposure risk have become major concerns among physicians performing interventional procedures.6, 7, 8, 9, 17, 18, 19, 20 The present findings raise additional concern regarding occupational radiation exposure-induced malignancies.21
Disclosures
Dr. Goldstein is an owner of equity in ECLS, Inc., which develops shielding devices for radiation protection. The other authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose.
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