How Long Does a Radiation Stay in Your Body?

How long does radiation stay in your body? 50% of all cancer patients around the world require some form of radiotherapy or nuclear treatment, but these individuals may also experience residual radiation as a side effect.

It’s essential for practitioners and medical professionals to understand radiation exposure and its effects in order to protect themselves and guide patients through this process.

Not only this, but medical experts should also wear protective gear whenever they are exposed to radiation from different treatments to safeguard their long-term health.

 

How Long Does Radiation Stay in Your Body

Before answering this question, it’s important to understand that there are different medical procedures that expose patients and practitioners to radiation.

External radiation therapy usually consists of a machine that emits radioactive beams like gamma rays. The rays are aimed at a tumor in a controlled environment, so the effects only last a few seconds. A heavy dosage of X-rays can also be used for external radiation therapy.

External radiation therapy doesn’t usually produce long-lasting effects on patients. However, technicians and medical professionals who are exposed to these may encounter long-term radiation effects if not protected properly.

Internal radiation therapy, on the other hand, causes longer-lasting effects for patients.

In some types of internal radiation, a pellet or “seed” that contains radioactive material is placed close to or within a cancerous tumor inside of the body. In other cases, patients have to swallow capsules or liquids that emit radiation, which stays in their systems longer than beams.

So, how long does radiation stay in the body after treatment? It depends on the type of therapy.

People with chronic exposure to gamma rays and similar therapies (like the technicians who operate X-ray machines) may retain radiation for weeks or months. This depends heavily on whether or not they wear protective gear.

Capsules and drinks may leave residue radiation for days after they’re ingested. Seeds are placed permanently, so these patients have to take additional steps to protect those around them. That said, the radiation levels from this internal therapy drop significantly after a few weeks or months.

 

Best Practices to Reduce the Effects of Radiation

Hospitals and similar facilities can protect their medical team by following radiation protection best practices. Let’s take a closer look.

 

Provide Radiation Protection Equipment

Lead aprons, thyroid shields, and other protective equipment greatly reduce the immediate and long-term impact of ionizing radiation.

Medical facilities need to ensure that these accessories are properly fitted to protect the wearer’s vital organs and avoid health issues down the line.

 

Implementing Protective Measures

In addition to the protective equipment, facilities should also implement protocols and guidelines to keep the team safe at all times. For example, instructions on how to handle radioactive materials at all times.

Also note that having adequate facilities like lead walls and protection barriers are necessary to provide a basic level of protection.

 

Offer Education and Training

Besides knowing what to do, your team should also understand the dangers of devices and medicines that emit radiation.

To achieve this, hospitals and similar facilities should offer training sessions to explain the impact of radiation and why it’s crucial to follow the security best practices being taught.

 

What Impacts Radiation Retention?

The answer to the question “how long does radiation stay in your body after treatment?” varies greatly depending on a lot of different factors.

For instance, the age, overall health condition, and lifestyle all influence radiation retention in both patients and medical experts.

Moreover, the intensity, type, and frequency of the exposure also affect how long radiation stays in the body. As a general rule of thumb, being exposed during a short period of time to external radiation has the mildest effects.

High levels of radiation and chronic exposure, like that of internal therapy patients or radiotherapy professionals, produce more severe, longer-lasting effects.

 

Tips for Flushing Residual Radiation

Does radiation stay in your body forever? Not necessarily because even permanent implants tend to lose potency after a few months.

Not only this, but it’s also possible for patients to take steps to flush out radiation faster.

 

Stay Active and Drink Plenty of Water

Drinking lots of water and staying active can help patients flush radiation out of their systems faster. Not only this, but increasing your fiber intake is also a great way to increase the amount of radiation released from your body.

 

Monitoring and Follow-Up Care

Patients who have residual radiation should get regular medical checkups to help monitor their health. Doctors may order blood tests, imaging, and other diagnostics to check for signs of long-term effects like cancers.

In case anything is detected, it’s equally important to receive follow-up care and pay close attention to the medical advice.

 

Rehabilitation and Support Services

Lastly, patients should have rehabilitation services and a support network at their disposal to help them recover as much as possible. Some patients will see a full recovery after some time, while others may require treatment permanently.

Patients who require long-term treatment may need additional support, so having a great network of caring individuals can help carry them through this difficult part of the recovery.

 

Final Thoughts…

Nuclear treatments and radiotherapy can both leave significant amounts of radiation in a patient’s body. It’s important to let patients know how long radiation stays in the body to build the right expectations and guide them through the recovery process.

In addition, medical facilities should also take steps to protect both patients and the medical experts operating radiation-powered devices. Lead aprons, thyroid shields, and other accessories can greatly reduce the amount of radiation that enters the body and protect vital organs down the line.

Barrier Technologies specializes in manufacturing protective personal equipment for clinics, hospitals, and other facilities that provide radiation treatment. To learn more, contact us today.