You are in your doctor’s office because of some stomach pain you have been having. After pushing and prodding a bit, he says to you, “I’d like to send you for a CT scan.” Would you simply agree? I know I would. After all, the doctor knows best…right?

     But what if that scan could kill you? What if I told you that 15,000 people are going to die this year as a result of CT scans? I’m willing to bet that it would make you think twice about agreeing so easily.

     According to the National Cancer Institute, CT (computerized tomography) scans are causing 29,000 excess cancers a year. Nearly 15,000 of those may be fatal.

     CT scanners work by detecting and measuring x-rays that are beamed through the body. Those measurements are then composed into images showing the inside of the body. So, as you can imagine, doctors find them to be very useful tools.

     The problem is many docs have become so enamored of them that they are ordering them like they order take out -- with little regard to the consequences to the patient. The radiation you receive during a CT scan is cumulative. That means it never goes away. It builds on itself. The more scans you have over your lifetime the higher your risk gets.

     In 1980, about 3 million CT scans were performed a year. Today that number has skyrocketed to 72 million!

     In many cases there are alternatives to a CT scan. Don’t be afraid to ask about them. Ask if the scan is even really needed. The risk you face when having a CT scan has always been spun as a “small one.” The fact is 29,000 extra cases of cancer a year, and a potential 15,000 deaths, are not small numbers.

     With the huge increase in scans, this is a ticking time bomb waiting to explode on us. Some would say it already has.