Radiation Therapy
Radiation therapy, often known as radiotherapy, is a common cancer treatment that kills cancer cells with radiation (typically high-powered X-rays). Radiation therapy can be used alone or with other therapies such as surgery or chemotherapy. Radiation oncologists are medical professionals who specialize in radiation therapy. Your radiation oncologist will assess whether radiation therapy is beneficial to you. If this is the case, they will select the most appropriate type of radiation therapy for your specific malignancy. They also create a radiation therapy plan with a radiation dosage that would kill cancer cells while sparing neighboring healthy tissue.
Types of radiation therapy
Radiation therapy is classified into two types: external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) and internal radiation therapy. Both forms destroy a cancer cell’s DNA. Cancer cells die and tumors shrink when they do not receive DNA instructions to grow and replicate.
Why does radiation therapy work?
Radiation therapy destroys cancer cells, reduces tumors, and alleviates cancer symptoms.
It may be your sole treatment, or it could be used to:
- Tumors should be shrunk before other cancer treatments, such as surgery (neoadjuvant therapy).
- After surgery, destroy any remaining cancer cells using adjuvant therapy.
- Kill cancer cells that resurface after previous treatments.
Radiation therapy can also eliminate benign (noncancerous) tumors that cause symptoms.
Procedure Details
Before treatment
Before beginning internal radiation therapy, you may need to have a physical examination and imaging. Your radiation oncologist will explain how to prepare for the procedure based on how you will be treated with radiation. A simulation, or planning appointment, is required for external beam radiation treatment (EBRT). Simulation is a treatment planning stage that allows you to change your treatment. Simulation entails getting into position and scanning. Simulation allows your radiation oncologist to calculate your radiation dose and how you will receive it.
During treatment
Internal radiation therapy is normally performed in a specialized outpatient treatment room or at a hospital. Your radiation oncologist may introduce the radiation implant through a short flexible tube known as a catheter. Anesthesia will be administered for this treatment to ensure that you do not experience any pain or discomfort throughout the operation. The systemic method of internal radiation therapy involves administering radioactive fluid via an IV. With EBRT, you lie on a table in the same position as during simulation. The radiation machine moves around you, yet it never touches you. A radiation therapist operates the machine from a different room. You can communicate with each other at any moment via an intercom. As the tumor alters places, the system delivers precise radiation dosages to it. You will not feel anything during the therapy.
After treatment
Internal radiation therapy usually allows you to return home the same day following a brief recuperation period. Occasionally, you may need to stay in the hospital while your body expels trace levels of radiation. Following systemic (IV) radiation therapy, you may secrete small amounts of radiation through bodily fluids such as perspiration, urine, and blood.
If you receive IV or permanent internal radiation therapy, you have a minor risk of exposing others to radiation. Follow your radiation therapy team’s recommendations for how much interaction you should have with others following irradiation. You should be able to resume your normal daily activities before and after EBRT. There is no risk of exposing others to radiation.
Conclusion
Radiation therapy continues to be an important aspect of cancer treatment, providing hope to patients worldwide. While it may provide obstacles, the benefits of controlling or eradicating cancer are significant. Ongoing research and technology improvements are refining radiation therapy, making it even more targeted and successful. For many patients who have been diagnosed with cancer, radiation therapy provides not only treatment but also the prospect of living a longer and better life.
