Nuclear Pharmacy Issues - Research Paper Example

Nuclear pharmacy With the rising number of cancer patients, demand has been increasing for an effective, efficient and reliable way of diagnosing and treating the disease alongside numerous other notorious internal diseases. Nuclear pharmacy offers such a solution but its usage remains contentious given its costs coupled with possible side effects arising from exposing soft tissues of the body to the harmful radiations. Nuclear pharmacy just as the name suggests refers to the use of radioactive materials in the diagnosis and treatment of a disease. Nuclear pharmacy promises to improve health care using safe radioactive drugs not only in diagnosis but also in the treatment of various diseases. The new method of diagnosing and treating diseases presents a number of both advantages and disadvantages al of which affects its acceptance as the discussion below portrays. Nuclear pharmacy works by detecting radiations coming from the body of a patient. The doctors inject a radiotracer in the blood vessels of a patient. As the radiotracer flows in the veins of the patient, it emits gamma radiations since it decays in the process. A gamma camera scans the radiations thereby creating an image. This provides a vivid visual aid in the diagnosis process. The process carries out the diagnosis process by analyzing the functionality of the various organs in the body. Such is an effective method of diagnosis since it analyses the functionality of the individual organs. The process of diagnosis differs from other conventional methods that analyses the anatomical and structural appearance of the organs. Analyzing the anatomy and structures of the organs does not provide a vivid portrayal of the effects of the tumors among other infections that impair the functionality of the organs. This implies that nuclear pharmacy offers a realistic way of diagnosing diseases thereby advising equally effective modes of treatments. Nuclear pharmacy comprises of two fundamental parts known as the radioisotope and a carrier molecule. The radioisotope is a unique chemical element with an unstable nucleus. The unstable nucleus decays to a stable nucleus thereby emitting radiations. A carrier molecule just as the name suggests is a chemical molecule that carries the radioisotope. During a process of diagnosis, a doctor injects the carrier molecule with radioisotope into the veins of the patient. The carrier molecules travels throughout the body of the patient including the heart and lungs which are always the most difficult to diagnose. The gamma camera records the movements of the radiation that the radioisotope emits thereby providing an effective and reliable assessment and measurement of the functionality of the various organs. As explained earlier, nuclear pharmacy is useful both in the diagnosing and in the therapeutic process of treating a disease. In therapeutic uses, doctors administer prescribed doses of the ionizing radiations to the specific sites of the diseases. The method of treatment is effective in the treatment of cancer, thyroids, and Graves’ disease among others. The process is effective in the treatment of the diseases since its administration enjoys specificity to the infected tissues and organs (Hung and Thorson 101). This reduces the risk of destroying non-infected tissues as feared by other modes of treating such infections. In diagnosis, the process just as described earlier provides detailed descriptions of the morphology and the functioning of several interior organs and tissues of the body (Zimmer 65). Suitability of the use of nuclear pharmacy in the practice of medicine in the contemporary society remains subject to varied opinions with various people providing varied reasons for their opposition or proposition of the method. Despite such, the process has numerous proven advantages key among which is the fact that it provides reliable and effective way of diagnosis and treatment of diseases. Such is an advantageous feature that makes the method cost effective since unlike many others it provides a way of detecting diseases in the internal organs of the body before providing an equally effective way of treating the detected diseases depending on the suitability of the method in treating the detected diseases. Nuclear pharmacy is a common method for treating cancerous cells. Just like any other radiations, it provides effective destructions of the cells thereby providing a lasting solution to the notorious and deadly disease. Additionally, the method can treat numerous disease sites in the body. As explained earlier, an injection of the carrier molecule with the radioisotopes into the veins of a patient. This provides a holistic analysis of the entire body with the equipment recording the patterns in the functionality of various internal organs. In case the diagnosis detects infections in various parts of the body, the method provides reliable ways of introducing the radioactive materials to the specific sites thereby destroying the cells. The process safeguards specificity thereby increasing the chances of treating a disease. Other advantages of the method include the fact that provides a fast relief to pain. Pain is one of the greatest concerns for most cancer patients. Nuclear pharmacy provides a way of radiating particular sites a feature that limits the destruction of non-infected tissues in the body of a patient. The specificity feature of the method of treatment limits the pain that most patient often develop soon after undergoing other modes of treatment. The effectiveness of removing the cancerous tissues provides a fast relief to the pain associated with the growth of cancerous tumors. In some cases, a single dose administered to a patient is always adequate in the treatment of some patients depending on the stages of the infections (Kowalsky and Steven 66). The process is effective in the treatment of tumors particularly in the treatment of bone metastasis. Compared to other numerous methods of treating similar diseases, nuclear pharmacy shows tendencies of being the most cost effective method in the treatment of the diseases. While the process is always expensive, the fact that it safeguards the effectiveness of the treatment enhances its cost effectiveness (Troy 91). The process is painless, provides effective and fast relief to the pain and does not leave any side effects. As such, the patients do not incur other associated costs in the management of the resultant pain or other side effects. Such basic features make the process preferred by many. The process offers both treatment and diagnosis possibilities. This implies that patients undergo a single comprehensive process that safeguards the quality and safety of the entire process. Besides the numerous advantages, nuclear pharmacy has a number of disadvantages as well. Key among such is the fact that the process may produce allergic reactions. The process introduces an external agent into the body of a human a feature that is likely to cause allergic reactions. However, such are always mild depending on the extent of exposure. Additionally, the process has a substantial risk of radiation. Nuclear just as explained earlier employs radioactive materials in diagnosing and treating diseases. As such, it presents a risk of radiation, which would cause immense tissue damages. However, the process has immense precision that helps limit the risks of radiation. In case a patient receives multiple fractions, the process may cause immense pain and discomfort. Nuclear pharmacy is normally a less painful when compared to the other processes. When carried out repeatedly on a single patient, the process may turn traumatic and cause immense pain and discomfort. Additional disadvantages of the process include the fact that the process is not recommended for pregnant women. Unborn babies have undeveloped features that are sensitive to radiations. Unborn babies share the blood vessels and the nervous system with their mothers. Introducing the radioactive substance in the blood stream of the mothers is tantamount to introducing the same into the blood streams of the babies a feature that may cause stillbirths, miscarriages and underweight babies among many other anomalies (Chilton and Richard 56). Using the procedure to fill teeth, bridges and dental braces cause permanent distortions in the mouth. The above discussion shows a vital medical process that promises vita possibilities. Cancer and tumors are some of the major leading of deaths globally. Medical practitioners therefore continue to carry out extensive medical and chemical researches with the view to discovering better ways of diagnosing and treating such diseases (Richards, www.nytimes.com). Nuclear pharmacy is one such process. The process offers myriad possibilities used in the diagnosis and treatment of the notorious diseases. While the process has a number of disadvantages, it promises a number of advantages that make it the best method used in the treatment of the diseases in the contemporary society. Conclusion In retrospect, I believe that nuclear pharmacy is a timely and effective process that enhances the practice of medicine by presenting appropriate and reliable ways of diagnosing and treating some of the most notorious diseases on earth. While the process has a number of disadvantages such the high cost of the services, allergic reactions in some cases and the risk of radiation, it remains the most effective process now. The fact that process offers ways of diagnosing and treating the diseases makes it an exhaustive and cost effective process. A single dose is often sufficient in treating some types of tumors. Additionally the process is painless and presents minimal side effects. Works cited Chilton, Henry M, and Richard L. Witcofski. Nuclear Pharmacy: An Introduction to the Clinical Application of Radiopharmaceuticals. Philadelphia: Lea & Febiger, 1986. Print. Hung, JC, and LM Thorson. "Effects of Generator Eluate Age on the Radiochemical Purity of Fractionated 99tcm-Mag3." Nuclear Medicine Communications. 16.3 (1995): 157-60. Print. Kowalsky, Richard J, and Steven W. Falen. Radiopharmaceuticals in Nuclear Pharmacy and Nuclear Medicine. Washington, D.C: American Pharmacists Association, 2011. Print. Moini, Jahangir. Pocket Guide for Pharmacy Technicians. Clifton Park, N.Y: Delmar, 2012. Print. Richards, Paul J. When Medical Experts Disagree. Room for debate. November 17, 2013. Internet resources. http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2013/11/17/when-medical experts-disagree Rourke, Matt. Getting Your Prescriptions, Without a Prescription.Room for debate. September 16, 2012. Internet resource. http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/09/16/getting your-prescriptions-without-a-prescription Saha, Gopal B. Fundamentals of Nuclear Pharmacy. New York: Springer, 2010. Print. Selected Papers on Nuclear Pharmacy: A Review of Developments in One of Pharmacys Most Rapidly Expanding Areas of Specialization. Washington: American Pharmaceutical Association, 1976. Print. Troy, David B. Remington: The Science and Practice of Pharmacy. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins, 2005. Print. Zimmer, Albert. The Pharmacist in Nuclear Medicine. Chicago: OPI, 1977. Read More