The use of ionizing radiation has been hailed as a medical breakthrough that has helped save countless lives around the globe because of its effectiveness when it comes to diagnosing illnesses especially those that are life threatening. Ionizing radiation is primarily what is usually used in the various equipment used in radiology including in paediatric radiology.
In this article we are going to look at 3 serious illnesses that require paediatric radiology to diagnose.
1 Wilms tumor
Wilms tumor which is also commonly referred to as nephroblastoma is a type of cancer that affects the kidneys and will typically be found in children, and on very rare occasions in adults. One of the major concerns about this cancer is that majority of the cases that are diagnosed that is 75 per cent are usually in children who are otherwise normal, with the rest of the cases that is 25 per cent found in children with some form of developmental abnormality. The good news is that it’s highly responsive to treatment.
2 Leukemia
Leukemiais essentially a group of cancers which will often begin forming in the bone marrow therefore resulting in the formation of high numbers of abnormal white blood cells which are often not fully developed. The illness will typically be diagnosed through blood tests or a bone marrow biopsy. It’s still not clear what the exact cause of leukemia is however it’s believed that it may be a combination of environmental and genetic factors.
3 Teratoma
A teratoma is essentially a tumor that is made up of several different types of tissue, such as muscle, hair, or bone and will typically form in the testicles, ovaries or the tailbone. In some rare occasions, it may form in other areas of the body. Some of the complications associated with teratomainclude testicular torsion,ovarian torsion, or hydropsfetalis.
As is common with most cancers, the earlier they are detected and treatment administered, the higher the chances of the treatment being successful. This is why paediatric radiology is very important.