(Medicine) the treatment of disease (especially cancer) by exposure to a radioactive substance.
Syndrome resulting from exposure to ionizing radiation (e.g., exposure to radioactive chemicals or to nuclear explosions); low doses cause diarrhea and nausea and vomiting and sometimes loss of hair; greater exposure can cause sterility and cataracts and some forms of cancer and other diseases; severe exposure can cause death within hours.
See moreThe spontaneous emission of a stream of particles or electromagnetic rays in nuclear decay.