radiation sickness

American  

noun

Pathology.

1. sickness caused by irradiation with x-rays or other nuclear radiation as a result of therapeutic treatment, accidental exposure, or a nuclear bomb explosion and characterized by nausea, vomiting, headache, cramps, diarrhea, loss of hair and teeth, destruction of white blood cells, and prolonged hemorrhage.

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radiation sickness British  

noun

1. pathol illness caused by overexposure of the body or a part of the body to ionizing radiations from radioactive material or X-rays. It is characterized by vomiting, diarrhoea, and in severe cases by sterility and cancer

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Etymology

Origin of radiation sickness

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

He says they found another colleague standing on one of the turbines, apparently unhurt but vomiting - a sign of radiation sickness.

From BBC • Apr. 18, 2026

“People who are exposed to these ... are in big trouble and are liable to radiation sickness, liable to cancer down the road if they survive post-exposure.”

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 31, 2024

Officials with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works are offering $1,000 for the return of a gauge that, if damaged, can cause radiation sickness.

From Washington Times • Dec. 16, 2023

On the same day as his diary entry about inviting reporters, he had a phone conversation with a fellow officer at Oak Ridge about Japanese radio broadcasts reporting cases of radiation sickness.

From Slate • Aug. 8, 2023

The cloud necessitated the hasty evacuation of nearby Marshall Islands residents to Kwajalein Island, four hundred miles distant, where they were treated for radiation sickness.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik