美国的辐射生物学工作者。
Radiation biology workforce in the United States.
机构信息
Departments of Environmental Medicine and Radiation Oncology, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York, USA.
Department of Radiation Oncology, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, Richmond, Virginia, USA.
出版信息
J Appl Clin Med Phys. 2022 Dec;23 Suppl 1(Suppl 1):e13743. doi: 10.1002/acm2.13743.
In recent decades, the principal goals of participants in the field of radiation biologists have included defining dose thresholds for cancer and non-cancer endpoints to be used by regulators, clinicians and industry, as well as informing on best practice radiation utilization and protection applications. Importantly, much of this work has required an intimate relationship between "bench" radiation biology scientists and their target audiences (such as physicists, medical practitioners and epidemiologists) in order to ensure that the requisite gaps in knowledge are adequately addressed. However, despite the growing risk for public exposure to higher-than-background levels of radiation, e.g. from long-distance travel, the increasing use of ionizing radiation during medical procedures, the threat from geopolitical instability, and so forth, there has been a dramatic decline in the number of qualified radiation biologists in the U.S. Contributing factors are thought to include the loss of applicable training programs, loss of jobs, and declining opportunities for advancement. This report was undertaken in order to begin addressing this situation since inaction may threaten the viability of radiation biology as a scientific discipline.
近几十年来,辐射生物学家领域的参与者的主要目标包括为监管机构、临床医生和工业界定义癌症和非癌症终点的剂量阈值,以及为最佳实践辐射利用和保护应用提供信息。重要的是,这项工作的很大一部分需要“基础”辐射生物学科学家与其目标受众(如物理学家、医学从业者和流行病学家)之间建立密切的关系,以确保知识的空白得到充分解决。然而,尽管公众接触高于背景水平的辐射的风险不断增加,例如长途旅行、医疗程序中电离辐射的使用不断增加、地缘政治不稳定的威胁等等,但美国合格的辐射生物学家人数却急剧下降。据认为,造成这种情况的因素包括适用的培训计划的丧失、工作岗位的丧失以及晋升机会的减少。之所以进行本报告,是为了着手解决这一局面,因为无所作为可能威胁到辐射生物学作为一门科学学科的生存能力。