Cancer patients shouldn't suffer from ferry security

Sun | Opinion

If there weren't already enough things to worry about as a cancer patient, apparently increased security on the ferry system, and in the world in general, is now another one.

On June 24, the first day Washington State Ferries began heightened security, the passengers of the 5:30 p.m. run of the Seattle-Bainbridge Island ferry were held for half an hour because of a cancer patient.

While screening vehicles at the Coleman Dock in Seattle, a Coast Guard officer wearing a radiation monitor detected an "excessively high" radiation reading coming from one car.

A passenger in that car had undergone radiation treatment for cancer.

The officer let the car board the ferry, but later detained the vehicle's occupants for questioning. In addition, all the vehicles and passengers on the ferry were held at the dock on Bainbridge for half an hour.

It couldn't have been a good situation for anyone involved.

I am sure the Coast Guard officer was trying to follow new procedures. I am sure the cancer patient felt angry and hassled.

Who would think that simply riding the ferry following radiation therapy would cause so much trouble for so many people?

My father is currently undergoing radiation therapy for cancer. If this had happened to him, I can't imagine how he would react.

As a former military officer who still works on contract for the government, he might be tolerant. As a man who prides himself on his ability to "buck up" and doesn't want to be run by a disease, he might be apoplectic.

His reaction would largely depend on the circumstances of the day. Did he spend his day undergoing strength-sapping treatments or hassled at a medical center battling insurance companies? Did he spend his day trying to have fun with family, trying to forget his medical condition for a few hours?

Apparently the ferry incident was a very unusual occurrence, according to Susan Harris, customer information manager for Washington State Ferries. Radiation isn't often the subject of security searches, Harris said.

The Coast Guard officer was called in to provide an additional explosive-sniffing dog for the new searches and happened to be wearing his radiation monitor that detected the "problem." It wasn't normal.

Since 9/11 though, there are an increasing number of things that aren't "normal." This the questioning of radiation treatment patients is now one of them.

In our new security-minded era it seems prudent to offer those undergoing radiation treatment a method to confirm their medical condition.

The Transportation Security Administration already has a procedure in place to screen airplane passengers with medical implants.

Some pacemaker patients cannot be screened by a typical metal detector. Instead they carry a Pacemaker Identification Card that is shown to a screener and allows them to be patted down. There are also procedures for other implanted medical devices, from bone growth stimulators to metal joints, to allow these passengers to pass screening.

It seems there should now be a similar protocol for radiation therapy patients. For those riding ferries, Harris recommended carrying a letter from a doctor verifying the person is undergoing radiation treatment.

I would hope those providing ferry system security revisit this incident. Unlike the airport, there are no formal security screenings for all passengers and vehicles on ferries. Also unlike the airport, the ferry system is daily transportation sometimes for those cancer patients to reach treatments and doctors on the other side of the water.

Considering the world we live in now, I am telling my father not to ride the ferry, or perhaps even travel, without a letter about his treatment, at least until the radiation wears off. Not only will it save him aggravation, it will potentially assist his fellow passengers.

Best of all, it could prevent an ugly scene with the Coast Guard if Dad is so inclined to tell a law enforcement officer just where he to stick his radiation detector.