Cancer risk and radiation exposure from CT scans

This editorial in Archives of Internal Medicine introduces the two studies that investigated the amount of radiation exposure and related cancer risks from computed tomographic scans (links to both papers are at the bottom). The author states, "Two articles in this issue of the Archives make us question if we have gotten carried away in our enthusiasm. Every day, more than 19 500 CT scans are performed in the United States, subjecting each patient to the equivalent of 30 to 442 chest radiographs per scan." Bottom line: think it through carefully first.