Radiation therapist

Would you like to work with a team of medical specialists that help people battle and recover from cancer If so, consider a career as a radiation therapist. 

Radiation therapists, working under the direction of physicians, administer doses of radiation to cancer patients in order to kiii invasive cancer ceiis. Computers are used to heip plan the course of treatment. The therapists also prepare the patients for treatment and explain the expected side effects. The administration of the radiation often involves the use of state-of-the-art medical equipment. 

With proper safety procedures, radiation can be very useful in many scientific experiments. Neutron activation analysis is used to detect trace amounts of elements present in a sample. Computer chip manufacturers use this technique to analyze the composition of highly purified silicon wafers. In the process, the sample is bombarded with a beam of neutrons from a radioactive source, causing some of the atoms in the sample to become radioactive. The type of radiation emitted by the sample is used to determine the types and quantities of elements present. Neutron activation analysis is a very sensitive measurement technique capable of detecting quantities of less than 1 X 10 9 g. 

Radioisotopes can also be used to follow the course of an element through a chemical reaction. For example, CO2 gas containing radioactive carbon-14 isotopes has been used to study glucose formation in photosynthesis. 

Because the CO2 containing carbon-14 is used to trace the progress of carbon tbrough the reaction, it is referred to as a radiotracer. A radiotracer is a radioisotope that emits non-ionizing radiation and is used to signal the presence of an element or specific substance. The fact that all of an element s isotopes have the same chemical properties makes the use of radioisotopes possible. Thus, replacing a stable atom of an element in a reaction with one of its isotopes does not alter the reaction. Radiotracers are important in a number of areas of chemical research, particularly in analyzing the reaction mechanisms of complex, multi-step reactions. 

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Radiation Therapist Under the supervision of a physician, a radiation therapist administers radiation treatment to patients. Radiation therapists work closely with patients and must be compassionate and supportive. Training programs prepare radiation therapists to use particle accelerators and other forms of technology. Knowledge of radiation hazards is an important part of this job. For more information on chemistry careers, visit glencoe.com. 

J.C.F. MacDonald, Lois M. Myeis, P.M. Pfelzner, and D.H. Thomson, Cobalt-60 Teletherapy A Handbook for the Radiation Therapist and Physicist (New York Harper and Row, Hoeber Medical Division, 1964),... 

When cancer is diagnosed, three primary treatment modalities are available surgery, radiation treatment, and cancer chemotherapy. The purpose of this chapter is to describe the basic rationale of cancer chemotherapy and to provide an overview of the drugs that are currently available to treat specific forms of cancer. Rehabilitation specialists will routinely work with patients undergoing cancer chemotherapy. For reasons that will become apparent in this chapter, these drugs tend to produce toxic effects that directly influence physical therapy and occupational therapy procedures. Therefore, this chapter should provide therapists with a better understanding of the pharmacodynamic principles and beneficial effects, as well as the reasons for the potential adverse effects of these important drugs. 

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