C3 Advocate Suzanne Lindley Testifies at House Hearing

C3 advocate Suzanne Lindley testified at a House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health hearing entitled “Medical Radiation: An Overview of the Issues” on Friday, February 26, 2010.  The Subcommittee held the hearing to examine the potential benefits and risks of the use of radiation in medicine.

Suzanne spoke eloquently about how radiation therapies have allowed her to live and thrive with cancer.  She told the Subcommittee Members her story of hope and survival made possible by medical imaging technology and advances in radiation therapy.

Subcommittee Chairman Frank Pallone (D-NJ) convened the hearing to look into the possible need for a legislative fix or increased regulatory oversight of radiation therapy in light of a number of cases of patients being giving extraordinarily high doses of radiation – often with dire consequences.

Suzanne reminded the Subcommittee Members to be cautious when putting in place new regulations regarding the use of radiation,

“As my personal story makes painfully clear, there are enough barriers already out there, keeping patients from effective treatments: patients thinking, like I did, that they’re at the end of the road, when in reality, they are not. The last thing we need is to add yet another barrier by invoking unwarranted fear about the radiation used in these miraculous procedures.”

Listen to Suzanne share her story with the Subcommittee.  Or, if you prefer you can read Suzanne’s prepared testimony.

Other witnesses at the hearing included:

• James and Donna Parks, Gulfport, Mississippi
• Rebecca Smith-Bindman, M.D., Professor in Residence, Radiology and Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Medicine, University of California, San Francisco
• Eric E. Klein, Ph.D., Professor of Radiation Oncology, Washington University in St. Louis
• Cynthia H. McCollough, Ph.D., Director, CT Clinical Innovation Center, Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Professor of Radiological Physics, College of Medicine, Mayo Clinic
• Tim R. Williams, M.D., Chair, Board of Directors, American Society for Radiation Oncology
• Michael G. Herman, Ph.D., President, American Association of Physicists in Medicine
• Sandra Hayden, B.S., R.T(T), Vice Speaker of the House, American Society of Radiologic Technologists
• E. Steven Amis, Jr., M.D., F.A.C.R., American College of Radiology
• Kenneth Mizrach, Director, VA New Jersey Health Care System, Department of Veterans Affairs
• David N. Fisher, Managing Director, Medical Imaging Technology Alliance
• John J. Donahue, Vice-Chairman, Medicalis, Inc.

The prepared statements of all the witnesses are available on the Subcommittee’s website.