Occupational doses in radiation oncology in Manitoba--1980 to 1986

The province of Manitoba (population of 1.0 million) has two radiotherapy centers employing a number of people, of whom about 60 are exposed to radiation during the course of their work. The individual and collective radiation doses to these workers, as recorded by thermoluminescent dosimeter plaques, were reviewed for the period 1980 to 1986. Whole-body doses to radiotherapy technologists responsible for operating the treatment machines and brachytherapy afterloading procedures ranged from 0.5 to 2.5 mSv y-1, whereas the corresponding doses to nursing staff working on a hospital brachytherapy ward were about 1.0 mSv y-1. The collective occupational dose from radiotherapy in Manitoba was approximately 70 person-mSv. Trends show individual operator and collective doses to be increasing at a higher rate than the number of patients undergoing radiotherapy. Occupational exposure in radiotherapy in this province was found to be comparable to that encountered in nuclear medicine in Manitoba and greater than that in diagnostic radiology.