If you came across this article, it's probably because you're interested in becoming a radiation oncology technologist. I wrote this article mainly for people who, like me 3 years ago, didn't know what career to go into. There are so many factors to consider, such as education required, where I would work, how much money I would make, etc. I'm not sure how much money I would make. In this article, I will try my best to help you find out if being a radiation oncology technologist is the right career for you.
As a radiation oncology technologist, we treat cancer cells. Radiation has been used since 1903 as a technique to kill cancer cells. The results were initially random and killed both healthy and cancerous cells. It was only in the 1990s that the technology was improved to really "attack" only cancer cells and slowly become the radiation oncology we know today, one of the main treatments against cancer.
Radiation oncologists, who are doctors, plan and direct how treatments will be given, but it is the radiation oncology technologists who are really the executors of the technique. So, as a technologist we work with linear accelerators, these are the machines that will administer the x-ray dose to the patients. It's these rays that will kill the cancer cells. We also have the skills to analyze CT images to make sure that we're irradiating the right anatomical structures.
Technologists generally work Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Our schedules are very busy, so we have about 1 patient every 15 minutes. Our main tasks will be to greet, explain the treatment and answer the patient's questions, carefully set up the patient on the treatment table, take a CT scan and then analyze the CT images to visualize the exact positioning of the patient in order to accurately treat the tumor. Finally, we proceed with the treatment.
We work in hospitals, but not in any of them because they must have a cancer center with a radio-oncology department. In Quebec, we have 13 of them. On the other hand, with our training it is possible for us to work anywhere in Canada.
In Quebec, to become a radiation oncology technologist, you must complete a 3-year CEGEP program. This technique is given at Ahuntsic College, Dawson College and Sainte-Foy College.
Salary starts at $22.49 / hr and has a maximum of $32.93 / hr. And then, of course, as in all jobs, it is possible to work overtime ; )
So there you have it, you now know more about this highly rewarding profession on a daily basis.
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