Protecting Your Family from Thyroid Cancer

Thyroid cancer is the main form of cancer of the glandular (endocrine) system. In the US, there are 19,500 cases per year, mostly in women. One of the main causes of thyroid cancer is exposure to radioactivity. For example, people who were exposed to radiation therapy as children have many more thyroid tumors than those who were not. In the aftermath of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986 there was a 1000-fold increase in thyroid cancer in that part of the world. Those at the greatest risk are children, and the younger they are, the more vulnerable.

How does radioactivity cause thyroid cancer? The thyroid gland craves iodine. When a radioactive form of iodine is released into the atmosphere, as part of nuclear fallout, it eventually gets into people. This is quickly taken up by the thyorid gland, where it incites the formation of benign or malignant tumors.

Happily, there is a substance that can block the uptake of radioactive iodine by the thyroid. It is called potassium iodide (abbreviated KI). Potassium iodide is an old 19th century panacea that was included in the notorious Hoxsey "cancer cure." It is making a comeback in conventional medicine. .

Both the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have now recommended the use of potassium iodide for preventing thyroid cancer in case of a release of radioactivity into the atmosphere. The FDA has declared potassium iodide "a safe and effective means by which to prevent radio[active] iodine uptake by the thyroid glandand thus to obviate the risk of thyroid cancer in the event of a radiation emergency." When these regulations were issued, authorities were thinking of a Chernobyl-type accident. In the post-September 11 world, we have even greater fears on our mind.

While the risk of nuclear terrorism is still small, one should consider steps to protect yourself and your family. Authorities agree that potassium iodide should be taken prior to, or shortly after, radiation exposure. By doing so, you can block dangerous radioactive iodine by nearly 100 percent. But, frankly, who knows what conditions would be like in the wake of such a disaster. Wouldn't it be better to be prepared against this admittedly remote, yet potentially devastating, risk?

Potassium iodide is sold as an over-the-counter (OTC) drug under various names, such as Rad Block¨. It comes in bottles of 200 tablets. Each tablet contains 65 mg of potassium iodide which yields 50 miligrams of useable iodine. The FDA recommends two tablets (130 milligrams) per day for adults and adolescents and 65 milligrams per day for children. Potassium iodine is generally safe, but not without some potentially serious adverse effects. People with allergies to iodine should not take it and those with impaired kidney function may experience some other serious side effects. They should only take it under a doctor's supervision. Don't take it as a preventative unless there is a confirmed risk of radioactivity.

There is no way to get this much iodine from salt or from supplements. You would need to eat about seven pounds of iodized salt (a dangerous idea!) to get this much iodine. Sea Kelp Tablets contain just 0.15 milligram of iodine per tablet, so you would need 500 of them to equal one tablet of potassium iodide.

There are currently websites selling potassium iodide. You can find them by entering the words "potassium iodide" into a search engine, such as Google. Avoid fly-by-night operation that seem to have sprung up after September 11th. There are many rip-offs out there. You may be able to get it from a cooperative pharmacist. The cost should be modest, between $15 and $20 for a 200-tablet bottle. One bottle should be enough for each person in the family.

Let's hope the bottles just sit on the shelf and never get used! But on the outside chance that we might need it, wouldn't it be reassuring to have this for ourselves and our families?

Here at the Moss Reports

I have been preparing my eight lectures for the professional-level course on Integrative Cancer Therapy at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia that takes place on the coming weekend (November 16th and 17th). Registration is practically completed but there may be a few more spaces left. For information contact Sharifa Pettigrew at the Center for Integrative Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, 215-503-0720 or email: sharifa.pettigrew@mail.tju.edu.

This week I made some important additions to the www.cancerdecisions.com website. In the Health Professionals section (which is open to all) you will find some more of my lectures from over the years. I have added my speech on "The Morality of Oncology," which I gave to the German Society for Biological Cancer Therapy (the GfBK) at their 10th annual meeting in Celle, Germany, May, 2000.

Please visit us at www.cancerdecisions.com for lots of useful information and free back issues of this weekly newsletter. You can also order a Moss report there or from our coordinator Diane Galbo. Our business address is now PO Box 8183, State College, PA 16803. Our new phone number is 814-238-3369. Our toll-free number remains 800-980-1234.

Till next week...Best wishes for your safety, good health and peace of mind!

Ralph W. Moss, Ph.D.