Question: Hi If you were constantly in the way of a standard hospital x ray, would it cause cancer, or effect you in any way? Thanks will

Ailsa Powell answered on 23 Jun 2011:

X-rays are a form of radiation and so yes if you stood constantly in front of a hospital X-ray machine your body will be exposed to a lot of radiation and you could develop cancer as a result.

Radiation exposure is usually measure in how much exposure you receive in a year. So you could have your entire safe limit of exposure in one day and then none for the rest of the year or a little bit every day of the year and you would still be ok.

The amount of radiation exposure you would receive from just having an X-ray falls well below the safety limits so there is nothing to worry about, but the person taking your X-ray is in that room all day everyday, which is why they stand behind a shield to protect themselves from the radiation.