Rena Kingery

Rena Kingery is a Communications Specialist with the Office of Communications and Public Liaison and Office of Cancer Content at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). Her current work focuses on modernizing NCI’s public-facing cancer information so that it can be easily found via online search, answers questions people have about cancer, and is written in a voice and tone that builds trust with the public. Rena received a Master of Arts in Science Writing from Johns Hopkins University and is passionate about making science accessible to a wide range of audiences. When she’s not writing, Rena enjoys playing Celtic-style fiddle and swimming in lakes, rivers, and oceans.

Posts By This Author

Comparing Two Ways to Blast Tumors

IRP Study Is Examining the Long-Term Effects of Treatments for Children With Cancer

cancer cell being destroyed by a high-energy beam

Not long after German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen identified X-rays in 1895, doctors began using them to treat cancer. They soon realized, however, that this new ‘radium’ therapy — the forebearer of modern-day radiation therapy — could also cause cancer. Today, we know that radiation therapy poses much greater risks to children than adults because their cells are dividing more rapidly than those of adults, making the cells more sensitive to radiation. Children also have more years of life ahead of them during which a cancer instigated by their treatment might develop.

This page was last updated on Thursday, September 5, 2024