Argumentative Essay: Should We Use Nuclear Medicine?

Nuclear energy is used today for energy supply and about 15% of the world’s energy comes from nuclear power plants some forms of medicine such as nuclear medicine rely

Nuclear medicine is a certain branch of medicine that uses a specific type of radiation to give out important information about how a person's specific organs work. As well as, showing the organ and treating a disease that is inside of it. When information gets viewed by special physicians, they make sure to get a quick, accurate diagnosis of what the patient's illness is right away. The main organs that can be easily imaged by the nuclear medicine is the thyroid, bones, heart, liver, lungs, and the gallbladder. There are many hospitals that use the radiation; called radioisotope, in medicines. The most common one is named Technetium-99, which is used in medical diagnostic procedures annually. Nuclear medicine was created in the 1950s by physicians

The medical field also benefits from nuclear energy. Nuclear medicine is a field of medicine in which radioactive materials are used to diagnose and treat medical disorders

People also benefit from atomic research in the medical field. Many people are aware of the wide use of radiation and radioisotopes in medicine. Nuclear medicine mostly uses radioisotopes which emit gamma rays from within the body. Estimates show that about one out of every three hospital patients benefits in some way from the use of nuclear medicine. Just think, every time you have an X-ray taken you are benefiting from nuclear research. Without X-rays, doctors would have a far greater time trying to set a broken bone if they even knew it was broken! Another common medical procedure that involves atomic research is the Cat-Scan. During this procedure the patient is injected with a radioactive isotope which shows the flow of blood through the

Nuclear medicine technology has advantages and disadvantages just as any other career. Using nuclear medicine technology could diagnose a lot of harmful diseases. Also, it is more effective treatment for most categories of cancerous diseases and conditions in some medical institutions. This type of medicine technology helps physicians perform their responsibility of patients’ therapy easily; moreover, when a serious disease developed in the patient’s body, the x-rays of this medicine technology could scan the most sensitive part of the patient’s body.

Nuclear Medicine is the use of radioisotopes for diagnosis, treatment, and research. Radioactive chemical tracers emit gamma rays which provides diagnostic information about a person's anatomy and the functioning of specific organs. Radioisotopes are also utilizes in treatments of diseases such as cancer. It is estimated that approximately one in two people in Western countries are likely to experience the benefits of nuclear medicine in their lifetime.

During the early 1940’s atomic science had just began to mature. Many people were exploring the powerful mystery of the atom. Two of those people were Eugene Booth and John Dunning, who, in 1941, synthesized uranium-235. Immense scientific growth followed their contribution, since it allowed for nuclear fission (Griffith). In the years following this discovery, nuclear science took a turn. Once only used as a constructive power source, atoms began being explored for their destructive power. In 1942 the United States government funded the Manhattan Project that sole goal was to develop a nuclear bomb. The initiator for this endeavor was surprisingly the famous scientist Albert Einstein. He wrote to Franklin D. Roosevelt , and tipped him off

Doctors had been using radiation to destroy cancerous cells since the unfolding of X-rays and radium in the 1890s, but both techniques had their own issues. X-ray machines were complicated to make use of, and radium implanted near tumors. In addition, X-rays weren’t strong enough to be entirely effective, and as for both of them, they were quite expensive.

I am interested in entering the field of Nuclear Medicine Technology because of my father’s medical history. My father was diagnosed in Spring of 2017 with Stage IIB Melanoma. He was accepted into a clinical trial at Emory in Atlanta, GA to hopefully “cure” him. During his clinical trial, he has routine scans that use nuclear medicine technology to be able to see his melanoma sites and the rest of his body at a higher degree then past medical advances would allow. I am one of those patient family members that like to know everything about their family members treatments, so I have asked many questions about the nuclear medicine aspect of his care plan and find it fascinating.

Therapeutic nuclear medicine is used in many different ways to help and treat patients when they are fighting cancer or other diseases. Doctors will take the steps to do whatever they can to make sure that the patient will survive or at least achieve improvement in their health to some degree. When a patient is undergoing surgery to remove the cancer cells, the doctors will often have them go through radiation beforehand to shrink the cancer or tumor down to a size that is easier to remove and to ensure they are not removing more than necessary. Often during surgery, the surgeons will again treat the patient with radiation while they are open so that the radiation is hitting the direct tumor or cancer cells being targeted. Another benefit is that it provides the radiation treatment without having to direct it through the skin again. This reduces the amount of radiation that the patient is getting to a certain degree. Once the surgery is over, the patient will often have to continue with more treatments to make sure that, if anything was missed, it will be attacked by the radiation and be prevented from spreading. Eliminating the cancerous cells can often take more than one type of medical therapy, and it can often take multiple treatments (Radiation

Alternative medicine should not be funded because it is not as successful as conventional treatments. Holistic medicine is nothing more than the study of natural products in an effort to scrutinize what herbs help in a dietary way or revitalize health. When has the study of natural and dietary products become “alternative”? David Gorski an associate professor at Wayne State University argues that the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) should not be funded because the agency promotes alternative and complementary therapies in the absence of rigorous scientific evidence that they are effective. Conventional treatments become conventional treatments due to rigorous testing. Rigorous testing is required because it

Nuclear medicine is a branch of medical science, which uses small amounts of radioactive materials in order to diagnose and treat diseases. These diseases include cancers, heart diseases, and other irregularities in the body. The nuclear medicine is injected into the blood stream in order to identify potential diseases. There are over forty million nuclear medicine procedures preformed each year through radiation, or the energy in form of waves or high speed particles. The use of nuclear medicine allows the treatment of diseases without surgery. This form of treatment causes only minimal damage to the tissues surrounding cancerous cells.

“A tiny speck of plutonium-239, as little as three millionths of a gram, can cause lung cancer. One pound of plutonium-239 contains enough specks to kill nine billion people instantly” (Pringle 26). Plutonium-239 is a human-made element, also known as the most dangerous substance on earth. As a by-product of uranium fission, plutonium-239 is created by generating electricity from nuclear sources. Contrary to popular belief, nuclear energy is hazardous and threatening to health. The use of nuclear energy should be banned as evidenced by the number of accidents, health effects, and global impact.

The use of radioactive elements in medicine is still growing to this day. Many oncologists use it to treat their patients who have cancer. Many cancer patients use this option. They use the radiation to kill off cancer cells. X-ray technicians or radiologists will also use it to administer x-rays to people who may have a broken bone, or need an MRI. The patient is injected with a radioactive material that helps the doctor be able to see inside the body better, whether it be with pictures or ultrasound. Radioactive material is defined as “material that contains radioactivity and thus emits ionizing radiation. It may be material that contains natural radioactivity from the environment or a material that may have been made radioactive.” (The Healthy Physics Society). This happens when someone needs a colonoscopy. They have to drink or are injected with this liquid that helps their organs and all other masses in the body be seen better by the radioactive materials.

Nuclear energy has been around longer than people think. In 1934 Physicist Enrico Fermi experiments in Rome showing that Neutrons can split many kind s of atoms. In 1946 the Atomic Energy Commission was created to explore peaceful uses of energy and nuclear energy development. In 1951 an experimental Breeder reactor produced the first electric power from nuclear energy in