The Children’s Hospital of Illinois is getting $75,000 to help track radiation exposure in cancer patients. Hyundai Hope on Wheels awarded the grant to the hospital. The non-profit group’s mission is to help find a cure for childhood cancer. Doctor Karen Fernandez is a pediatrician at the Children’s Hospital. She says it’s important to track radiation exposure in patients when they receive an X-Ray or CT Scan:
“Medical people don't tend to think about the risk with radiation that every patient is exposed to with every diagnostic image. So we’re hoping that as we start this project with patients that have cancer, that we eventually can utilize that information and apply it to other patients that don't have cancer,” Fernandez says.
Fernandez says the funding will pay for additional staff and electronic upgrades to collect data on radiation exposure. She says better data means patients can choose other procedures depending on the treatment. Fernandez says data collection is set to begin in the coming months.