Dog info, please. Radioactive Iodine Uptake Test

[Don Ro]

Just had my cancerous thyroid removed and now a RAIU test is on the horizon. I was told that because of the radioactive tracer I must keep my distance from others for a week. That's doable for me but they tell me that my dog is included in that. He'll be a mess and I won't be much better...anyone faced this before?
I don't want to endanger him but is it *that* vital? I mean, shoot!, he sleeps w/me every night. What a PITA, eh?

[M.D. Holloway]

Don,
If thats the same as the radioactive drink my Mom had the same - she was told to keep a safe distance from all life forms for a week and make sure no women of child birthing age or pregnant ones were near. I guess your gonna be pushing out some beta particles that could possiblly make others sick? I think its more of a precaution than a hard core requirement but then again...

Sorry to hear about your cancer that does suck...

[mreid]

If you can't be near others even momentarily, what does that say about what it is doing to you? Can't keep away from yourself.

[M.D. Holloway]

If its what I'm thinking it is, when the thyroid is pretty much distroyed (sometimes with a radioactive iodine drink) they have to make sure its all gone as well. Iodine finds a quick path to that gland and when they use a radioactive drink to kill it, the beta particles blast away at the cells but leave others cells unharmed for the most part. There is still radiation but at a very low level. As for the tracer, that may be to see how much is still around? I would think that the dose is pretty low. They tell you not to be around other people as a precaution. Unless your on top of someone for hours I don't know if the risk is as high as you may think...but then again I am no doctor...

[Don Ro]

Thanks for the comments. Yes, the med. sheet lists a ton of cautions. No swapping of fluids - kissing, sex, etc. Pregnant women stay away. Flush toilet twice - even sit on toilet (no splashing of urine). Stay away from crowds.
Must be highly toxic.

And yes...what about me? - I'll be taking the pill, loading up myself w/this agent.
I can do it all...I just hate to be away from my little guy for a week - if he even sees me it'll break his heart if he can't climb all over me. I feel like a wimp.

[ckelly78z]

Sorry about the prognosis, trust me, I know what you're going through mentally with it all. 25 years ago when I had radiation treatments for Hodgkins Lymphoma, I didn't have that test, but my Thyroid has been non-existant ever since. I have been taking the thyroid meds ever since.

[M.D. Holloway]

Those meds can be a bear to balence sometimes...that gland has several functions and be prepared for serious mood swings once on protocol ... its all chemical but it beats the sht out of the other option...

[RWebb]

how old is the dog?

[gsmith660]

Yes you need to to stay away from everybody including your dog they don't need the radiation exposure you are giving off which depending on the other isotopes could be substantial. You also want to wash your bed sheets and clothes regularly as your sweat is radioactive right now and scrub your toilet daily as it will become a high source of radiation. Keep your toilet lid down so animals cant drink out of the toilet and wash your hands frequently. Just so you know my credentials I am a radiation protection specialist in commercial nuclear power. Depending on the isotope used radioactive iodine is pretty much gone in 8 days.

[Don Ro]

The dog is ~7 yrs. old, RW.
I think I know what your thoughts are - I thought that, too...only briefly.
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I'm under the impression that no one can be in my house for a week.
Then I need to turn a fire hose loose in the place.
I already miss my pup and it won't take place for 2-3 weeks.

I tell you, boys...enjoy your youth while you have it.
I never thought I'd get old (67).
(I think that smoking for 7 yrs. is the root cause of my problems)

[RWebb]

protect your dog and other family members!

[aigel]

Don,

I think I can help.

The Iodine you get is Iodine 131. It decays in two separate reactions. One results in beta and the other in gamma radiation. 90% is beta, 10% is gamma.

Beta radiation is a particle radiation. It is energetic electrons. The iodine decay yields fairly low energy electrons and they are stopped in tissue in a few mm and even in air won't go further than half an inch.
For your therapy, the beta radiation is the reason the iodine is chosen. Your thyroid sucks up all the iodine your body gets and it can't tell if it is a radioactive version (isotope) or not. This is really handy, as after a day or two all the radioactive iodine will be in your thyroid, only damaging it and any leftovers will go down your toilet.
The half life of the iodine is 8 days. This means after 8 days, the strength of the initial radiation will be only half. Another 8 days, it will be a quarter.

So, what does the beta radiation mean for the ones around you?
As you already learned and as others have posted, some iodine will be going into your toilet - but this is happening mostly on day 1 and 2. You need to be careful that none of this is ending up in someone else's body (your dog or family member). However, remember, the iodine decays, so even if it is left on your bathroom floor, it will be half after 8 days and so on.
The iodine that is stuck in your thyroid is NO danger to anyone around you. You literally would have to have someone in direct skin contact for the beta radiation being able to damage their body.

The gamma radiation is not a particle with a mass, it is a photon or a very powerful ray of light, so to speak. Gamma radiation is very penetrating and can travel out of your body, through the air and to anyone that is close to you. This is not a wanted reaction, it is a byproduct of this therapy.

So, as you can already tell, the gamma radiation is the main issue here. That said, it is only 10% of the energy from the iodine.
I mentioned that it is penetrating, which also is an advantage, as it does often just fly through everything, including your dog. (Not every gamma ray that will hit your dog will get absorbed / cause damage), many will continue through.
The main thing you have to do here is reduce the dose to others. Two ways to do this:
Distance: by staying away from them. What you have going for you here is the fact that the radiation dose that is received by someone close to you goes down dramatically with distance. I=1/d^2. This means if you double your distance, you will quarter your dose. If you triple it, you will have only 1/9th and so on.
Time: This is linear, if someone stays close to you for 2 hours, they get twice the dose they would have gotten if it would have been 1 hour.

I am not sure how close you have to have your dog? Is he in bed with you? On the couch all day? That would probably not be good. But in a kennel across the bedroom or at your feet on the couch should not be a problem. I would keep him at least 6 feet away and reduce time the first two days. After 4 days, I would not worry about it, especially since he is 7 years old already. (A pup that still has growing cells would be different).
And time is on your side. Of course you can pet your dog, cuddle with him, walk him etc., just minimize the time the first few days.

My father had the same treatment for an over-active gland. I researched it in detail. It is very effective and much better than surgery IMHO. I advised my father to take the radiation treatment over surgery against the preferred treatment of the GP. My dad came out of it great - no more thyroid medication or any bad effects. My mother stayed out of the bedroom for the first two nights. After that they'd sleep away in bed as well as possible and back to normal after a week.

Hope this helps? Let us know if you have more questions. PM if you like.

George

[aigel]

Sorry, I just realized that the RAIU is done, not thyroid destruction treatment. The RAIU has lower dose as it is only done for diagnostics, no tissue is purposely damaged. So, what I said above still applies, but my recommendation will be more conservative.

Good Luck,

George

[M.D. Holloway]

With the gamma rays being pushed out, you might not want to get your dog mad in the future...just say'n

[Don Ro]

Thank you, aigel, for taking the time to post the data.
I was wanting someone to tell me that I could still keep my little guy in the house w/me...yes, he sleeps in my (his) bed.
But, getting serious, I'll do what the Dr.s tell me to do - just isolate for 5 - 7 days and be done with it.
You have reinforced the importance of prudent caution.
.
And Thank You to all who posted.

[aigel]

The Dr. tells you to quarantine 100% because he doesn't want to get made liable if your dog or anyone else develops cancer late in life and he hadn't warned you. Like I said, keep the dog in the house but distance him 6+ feet 98% of the time for the week and the pooch will be fine. Wouldn't that be a good compromise over taking him away completely? I would do the same with my dogs. Of course you also have to make sure you don't beat yourself up if the dog ever develops cancer late in life. That could then be just a coincidence as many dogs do.

G

[gsmith660]

I am sorry if I was alarmist that was not my intention I didn't go into much detail because I didn't think it was needed. But I agree with aigel on most points particularly the fact that the dose rate will be diminishing over time and iodine will be basically gone in 8 days. I have had to go to nuclear medicine wards when I was still in the military to do routine surveys and usually the hotspots are the beds and the toilets with some toilets meeting the definition of a high radiation area according to 10 CFR 20 which is the fed. code that we live by. In your situation it is a temporary situation and will quickly peak and decay off as your body eliminates the isotopes and they decay. I-131 gamma predominate is 81% 364 KeV energy and therefore will only be a problem inside a couple of feet. Do you know how much they gave you? If you do I can calculate the dose rate you are giving off and set a safe distance. By all means don't remove the dog just keep it and your friends at a distance for a few days.

[Don Ro]

" Do you know how much they gave you? If you do I can calculate the dose rate you are giving off and set a safe distance. By all means don't remove the dog just keep it and your friends at a distance for a few days."
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I will drop the pill in a week or so...I can tell you the amount soon.
.
This dog lives inside my skin. I inherited him from an older couple that I was care-taking 3 yrs. ago...they passed on & wanted me to take him. They were house-bound so he only knew their back yard & the interior of their home. Quite shy around others except a good friend who will take him for the 5-7 days. I won't be able to have him in the house w/me because he stays close all the time.
Sweet boy (Poodle)...I don't want to harm him.
Thanks for the comment.

[Don Ro]

Originally Posted by mreid

If you can't be near others even momentarily, what does that say about what it is doing to you? Can't keep away from yourself.

This bothers me...I'll have to ask the Dr.s about this.
Hard to imagine that I'll be immune to the effects.

[gsmith660]

Originally Posted by Don Ro

This bothers me...I'll have to ask the Dr.s about this.
Hard to imagine that I'll be immune to the effects.

There are biological affects from this but the most affected cells are the rapidly reproducing cells ( cancer cells) and others in your body blood cells are one but they die quickly even if mutated. You are getting this treatment because it will attack the problem area and the permanent affect to the rest of the body will be minimal damaged cells will either repair or die and be replaced by healthy cells the accumulated dose needed to cause damage that can't be repaired is much higher than what you will get.