Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer Blog

Congressional investigators say “cancer patients sent home after treatment with radioactive iodine have contaminated hotel rooms and set off alarms on public transportation.” (Washington AP, 10/20).

According to reports, these patients have come into close contact with “vulnerable people, including pregnant women and children, and the household trash from their homes has triggered radiation detectors at landfills.”

Some attribute this to a decision by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to reduce requirements for the amount of days that a thyroid cancer patient must stay in the hospital after ingesting radioactive iodine to reduce tumor size. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is set to meet shortly to examine this issue. As a medical malpractice attorney, I am hopeful that the commission will act quickly and increase the requirement for extended stays in the hospital to ensure the safety of those around thyroid cancer patients, especially the most vulnerable.