The researchers recently tested the new software, called VirtualDose, in a simulation of an abdominal CT scan of a woman in her sixth month of pregnancy.

WSJ: Scientists Find Safer Ways to Test Medical Procedures

The radiation astronauts would face on a round trip would be comparable to getting an abdominal CT scan "about once every five days, " said Cary Zeitlin, principal scientist for the NASA-led Martian Radiation Environment Experiment.

CNN: SHARE THIS

"You can have a patient from the hospital with abdominal pain as an example, and you can run him through every high-tech equipment, CT scan, MRIs -- it's unlimited, " Zelt said.

CNN: Reality check: Canada's government health care system