Cancer risk from professional exposure in staff working in cardiac catheterization laboratory: insights from the National Research Council's Biological Effects of Ionizing Radiation VII Report.

Background: Occupational doses from fluoroscopy-guided interventional procedures are the highest ones registered among medical staff using x-rays. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the order of magnitude of cancer risk caused by professional radiation exposure in modern invasive cardiology practice.

Methods: From the dosimetric Tuscany Health Physics data bank of 2006, we selected dosimetric data of the 26 (7 women, 19 men; age 46 +/- 9 years) workers of the cardiovascular catheterization laboratory with effective dose >2 mSv.