Medical radiation scientist
Encyclopedia
Medical Radiation Scientists (MRS) are healthcare professionals who perform complex diagnostic imaging studies on patients or plan and administer radiation treatments to cancer
patients. Medical radiation scientists include diagnostic radiographers, nuclear medicine
radiographers, magnetic resonance radiographers
, medical/cardiac sonographers, and radiation therapists. Most medical radiation scientists work in imaging
clinics and hospitals' imaging departments with the exception of Radiation Therapists, who work in specialised cancer centers and clinics.
Graduates from the medical radiation sciences possess a good understanding of nuclear physics
, quantum physics, radiation physics, wave physics, medical terminologies, pathology
, oncology
, radiobiology
, mathematics
, anatomy
and physiology
, and are highly skilled in the operation of complex electronic equipments, computer
s, and precision instruments which often cost millions of dollars.
, including x-ray
s, whilst ensuring the patient is safely exposed to radiation. Some of the areas that Radiographers can specialise include education
, management, CT, ultrasonography, magnetic resonance imaging.
s produced from short-lived radioisotopes that emit radioactive tracer
s to investigate trauma and disease such as cancer, heart disease
and brain disorders.
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
patients. Medical radiation scientists include diagnostic radiographers, nuclear medicine
Nuclear medicine
In nuclear medicine procedures, elemental radionuclides are combined with other elements to form chemical compounds, or else combined with existing pharmaceutical compounds, to form radiopharmaceuticals. These radiopharmaceuticals, once administered to the patient, can localize to specific organs...
radiographers, magnetic resonance radiographers
Magnetic resonance imaging
Magnetic resonance imaging , nuclear magnetic resonance imaging , or magnetic resonance tomography is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to visualize detailed internal structures...
, medical/cardiac sonographers, and radiation therapists. Most medical radiation scientists work in imaging
Medical imaging
Medical imaging is the technique and process used to create images of the human body for clinical purposes or medical science...
clinics and hospitals' imaging departments with the exception of Radiation Therapists, who work in specialised cancer centers and clinics.
Educational requirements
A Medical Radiation Scientist must graduate from an accredited Bachelor of Medical Radiation Science or Bachelor of Applied Science in Medical Radiation Science program in order to register and practise in Australia. Even though there are bachelor's programs in Medical and Cardiac ultrasound but these are often offered at the graduate level as a certificate, postgraduate diploma, or master's degree for the Bachelor of Medical Radiation Science graduates.Graduates from the medical radiation sciences possess a good understanding of nuclear physics
Nuclear physics
Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies the building blocks and interactions of atomic nuclei. The most commonly known applications of nuclear physics are nuclear power generation and nuclear weapons technology, but the research has provided application in many fields, including those...
, quantum physics, radiation physics, wave physics, medical terminologies, pathology
Pathology
Pathology is the precise study and diagnosis of disease. The word pathology is from Ancient Greek , pathos, "feeling, suffering"; and , -logia, "the study of". Pathologization, to pathologize, refers to the process of defining a condition or behavior as pathological, e.g. pathological gambling....
, oncology
Oncology
Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with cancer...
, radiobiology
Radiobiology
Radiobiology , as a field of clinical and basic medical sciences, originated from Leopold Freund's 1896 demonstration of the therapeutic treatment of a hairy mole using a new type of electromagnetic radiation called x-rays, which was discovered 1 year previously by the German physicist, Wilhelm...
, mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, anatomy
Anatomy
Anatomy is a branch of biology and medicine that is the consideration of the structure of living things. It is a general term that includes human anatomy, animal anatomy , and plant anatomy...
and physiology
Physiology
Physiology is the science of the function of living systems. This includes how organisms, organ systems, organs, cells, and bio-molecules carry out the chemical or physical functions that exist in a living system. The highest honor awarded in physiology is the Nobel Prize in Physiology or...
, and are highly skilled in the operation of complex electronic equipments, computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
s, and precision instruments which often cost millions of dollars.
Diagnostic radiographers
Radiographers produce diagnostic images with various types of radiationRadiation
In physics, radiation is a process in which energetic particles or energetic waves travel through a medium or space. There are two distinct types of radiation; ionizing and non-ionizing...
, including x-ray
X-ray
X-radiation is a form of electromagnetic radiation. X-rays have a wavelength in the range of 0.01 to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30 petahertz to 30 exahertz and energies in the range 120 eV to 120 keV. They are shorter in wavelength than UV rays and longer than gamma...
s, whilst ensuring the patient is safely exposed to radiation. Some of the areas that Radiographers can specialise include education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
, management, CT, ultrasonography, magnetic resonance imaging.
Nuclear medicine radiographers
Nuclear Medicine Radiographers use gamma rayGamma ray
Gamma radiation, also known as gamma rays or hyphenated as gamma-rays and denoted as γ, is electromagnetic radiation of high frequency . Gamma rays are usually naturally produced on Earth by decay of high energy states in atomic nuclei...
s produced from short-lived radioisotopes that emit radioactive tracer
Radioactive tracer
A radioactive tracer, also called a radioactive label, is a substance containing a radioisotope that is used to measure the speed of chemical processes and to track the movement of a substance through a natural system such as a cell or tissue...
s to investigate trauma and disease such as cancer, heart disease
Heart disease
Heart disease, cardiac disease or cardiopathy is an umbrella term for a variety of diseases affecting the heart. , it is the leading cause of death in the United States, England, Canada and Wales, accounting for 25.4% of the total deaths in the United States.-Types:-Coronary heart disease:Coronary...
and brain disorders.