According to animal studies, amifostine protects against genomic instability and associated long term genomic damages resulting from radiation exposure, such as from CT scans and other diagnostic radiology and radiation oncology procedures that lead to DNA damages, chromosomal aberrations and gene mutations, all of which are associated with the cancer development.
The University of Chicago Radiation and Cellular Oncology professor and technology inventor David Grdina said in addition to protecting against genomic instability, somatic mutagenesis and carcinogenesis, amifostine may also facilitate protection against germ line mutations.
"These exposures can come from a variety of sources including common diagnostic procedures, such as CT scans and environmental exposures, as recently evidenced by the nuclear plant accident in Japan," Grdina said.