What is radiotherapy

Radiation therapy can effectively treat many types of cancer. Like other cancer treatments, it often causes side effects. There are some common possible side effects of radiation therapy, but side effects vary person to person. This is because side effects can depend on the type of cancer, its location, the radiation therapy dose, your general health, and other factors. It is important to talk to your health care team about any side effects you experience so they can find ways to help you. This article describes why radiation therapy causes side effects, the types of side effects you can expect, and how to cope with side effects. Learn more about the Why does radiation therapy cause side effects? In this type of treatment, high doses of radiation therapy are used to destroy cancer cells. Side effects come from damage to healthy cells and tissues near the treatment area. There have been major research advances in radiation therapy over recent years that have made it more precise. This has reduced this treatment's side effects compared to radiation therapy techniques used in the past. Some people experience few or no side effects from radiation therapy. Other people experience more severe side effects. Reactions to radiation therapy often start during the second or third week of treatment. Or, they may last for several weeks after the final treatment. Some side effects may be long term. Talk with your treatment team about what you can expect. Are there options to prevent or ...

Ingrid Vasquez is a Digital News Writer at PEOPLE. She graduated from The University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor in Journalism. Before joining the team, she worked as an Editor at FanSided and provided work in the celebrity and lifestyle space for brands that include Teen Vogue, Cosmopolitan, EW, and more.

Compare radiation treatments external beam therapy with brachytherapy and learn about their side effects In addition to treating cancer, radiation oncologists may use ionizing radiation to treat benign Early radiation therapy machines produced X-rays that were in the orthovoltage range (between about 140 and 400 kilovolts). That The majority of modern radiation therapy treatments are external beam teletherapy, or long-distance therapy (sometimes also called external beam radiotherapy). External beam machines produce ionizing radiation either by radioactive decay of a Intensity-modulated radiation therapy In what is known as conformal radiation therapy, radiation treatment uses multiple beams that conform to the tumour shape, thereby exposing relatively small areas of normal tissue to ionizing radiation. IMRT is a highly specialized form of conformal therapy. The technology makes use of an even greater number of small fields with tiny leaves, or collimators, which can block parts of the treatment field. The result is that high-dose irradiation can be delivered to the tumour while sparing the surrounding tissues. The precise position of the tumour may move during a treatment session or between treatment sessions if the targeted internal organs shift during breathing or digestion. Because IMRT requires highly accurate delineation of the tumour and the normal organs and structures, immobilization of the patient is critical. Image guidance can be employed to follow organ and tu...

Radiotherapy is used increasingly to treat some cancers. The benefit of radiotherapy and how it is used varies between different cancers. It can be used: • To try to cure the cancer completely. • In combination with surgery or chemotherapy. • To reduce the risk of a cancer coming back after the initial treatment. • To treat some of the symptoms caused by the cancer if cure is not possible. What are the aims of radiotherapy? To cure the cancer A cure is the aim in many cases. Some cancers can be cured with radiotherapy alone. Sometimes radiotherapy is used in addition to another main treatment. For example: • You may have surgery to remove a tumour but you may also be given a course of radiotherapy after the surgery. This aims to kill any cancer cells which may have remained following surgery. Unless treated, these may have caused a recurrence of the tumour at a later time. Radiotherapy given after surgery is called adjuvant radiotherapy. • Sometimes radiotherapy is given before surgery, to reduce the size of the tumour and make it easier to remove. Radiotherapy given before surgery is called neoadjuvant radiotherapy. • In some cases, radiotherapy and chemotherapy are used in combination. Find out more about Doctors tend to use the word remission rather than the word cured. Remission means there is no evidence of cancer following treatment. If you are in remission, you may be cured. However, in some cases, a cancer returns months or years later. This is why some doctors are...

Radiation therapy External beam radiation uses high-powered beams of energy to kill cancer cells. Beams of radiation are precisely aimed at the cancer using a machine that moves around your body. Radiation therapy for breast cancer uses high-energy X-rays, protons or other particles to kill cancer cells. Rapidly growing cells, such as cancer cells, are more susceptible to the effects of radiation therapy than are normal cells. The X-rays or particles are painless and invisible. You are not radioactive after treatment, so it is safe to be around other people, including children. Radiation therapy for breast cancer may be delivered through: • External radiation. A machine delivers radiation from outside your body to the breast. This is the most common type of radiation therapy used for breast cancer. • Internal radiation (brachytherapy). After you have surgery to remove the cancer, your doctor temporarily places a radiation-delivery device in your breast in the area where the cancer once was. A radioactive source is placed into the device for short periods of time over the course of your treatment. Radiation therapy may be used to treat breast cancer at almost every stage. Radiation therapy is an effective way to reduce your risk of breast cancer recurring after surgery. In addition, it is commonly used to ease the symptoms caused by cancer that has spread to other parts of the body (metastatic breast cancer). Why it's done Radiation therapy kills cancer cells. It's often us...

Some patients worry about the safety of radiation therapy. While radiation therapy involves exposure to hazardous radioactive particles, it has been used to safely treat cancer for more than 100 years. Many advancements have been made that have led to safety regulations and checkpoints during treatment. Treatment centers must follow certain rules and regulations to keep patients, workers, and visitors safe. It's important to remember that every patient is different, and your safety instructions may be different from other patients or people you know who have received radiation therapy to treat cancer. Any precautions you might need to take depend on what treatment is used and type and dose of radiation that's given. If needed, your cancer care team will give you exact instructions so you know what steps to take, and how long any precautions need to be followed. You should follow their instructions exactly. General radiation safety A common abbreviation used by doctors and radiation experts is ALARA. ALARA stands for “as low as reasonably achievable.” This means that people should limit being exposed to radiation that has no benefit to them. Keep in mind that it's impossible to avoid all radiation, and you can learn more in For people who need radiation therapy to treat their cancer, special precautions are used to protect other parts of their body from exposure to radiation. Before you begin receiving radiation therapy, the cancer care team works carefully to develop an ef...

Radiotherapy can be done in many different ways, depending on your circumstances. Before treatment starts Deciding to have treatment If you're diagnosed with cancer, you'll be cared for by a team of specialists. Your team will recommend radiotherapy if they think it's the best option for you, but the final decision is yours. Making this decision can be difficult. You may find it useful to write a list of questions to ask your care team. For example, you may want to ask about: • what the aim of treatment is – for example, is it being used to cure the cancer, relieve your symptoms or make other treatments more effective? • the possible side effects and what can be done to prevent or relieve them • how effective radiotherapy is likely to be • whether any other treatments could be tried instead If you agree with your team's recommendation, they'll start to plan your treatment once you have given your Planning your treatment Your treatment will be carefully planned to ensure the highest possible dose is delivered to the cancer, while avoiding damage to nearby healthy cells as much as possible. You will probably have a After the scan, some very small but permanent ink marks may be made on your skin to ensure the right area is targeted accurately each time. If you're having radiotherapy to your head or neck, a plastic mask will be made for you to wear during treatment. The ink marks will be made on the mask. Your treatment Radiotherapy is usually given daily over several weeks. B...

Radiation therapy is a cancer treatment that uses high-energy x-ray or other particles to destroy cancer cells. A doctor who specializes in giving radiation therapy to treat cancer is called a radiation oncologist. A radiation therapy regimen, or schedule, usually consists of a specific number of treatments given over a set period. Radiation therapy can treat many different types of cancer. It can also be used in combination with other cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy and/or surgery. This article provides a general overview of radiation therapy, the different types of radiation therapy, and why it is used to treat cancer. Learn more about How does radiation therapy treat cancer? Cancer begins when healthy cells change and grow out of control. All cells in the body go through a cycle to grow, divide, and multiply. Cancer cells go through this process faster than normal cells. Radiation therapy damages cell DNA so the cells stop growing or are destroyed. Unlike other cancer treatments affect the whole body, such as chemotherapy, radiation therapy is usually a local treatment. This means it generally affects only the part of the body where the cancer is located. Some healthy tissue near the cancer cells may be damaged during the treatment, but it usually heals after treatment ends. There are many different types of radiation therapy, and they all work a little bit differently to destroy cancer cells. What are the goals of radiation therapy? The goals of radiation thera...