Book ReviewProtection of the Patient in Radionuclide Investigations. Published for the International Commission on Radiological Protection, 1971 (Oxford, Pergamon Press), £2·00.

Abstract

Earlier reports of the ICRP concerned with permissible intake and body burdens of radionuclides have been mainly concerned with the problems of occupational exposure, and in particular the radionuclide is assumed to be taken into the body in the form of simple inorganic compounds. In clinical work a particular radionuclide may be administered to the patient in one or more of many different chemical or physical forms, and its metabolism, distribution and excretion depend a great deal on the radiopharmaceutical employed, as well as the clinical status of the patient. The present report, which clearly represents a great deal of work on the part of Dr. R. E. Ellis, has been prepared at the request of the ICRP to provide a scientific basis for any subsequent recommendations which may be made. The first part deals with the basic principles for minimizing the radiation dose which the patient must necessarily receive when undergoing tests involving the administration of radioactive Pharmaceuticals. In this section a number of extremely complex problems, including the ethical aspects of obtaining normal control data, are dealt with in a straightforward manner and with admirable clarity and brevity.