Radiation Therapy

Radiation treatment kills cancer cells by using highly concentrated, high-energy beams. It is often delivered via a machine outside the body (referred to as external-beam radiation treatment), most commonly in the form of x-rays but sometimes as protons or other kinds of energy. Internal radiation treatment may also be administered by implanting radioactive material near malignancies (called brachytherapy).

How It Is Employed

Radiation treatment has the ability to kill cancers and/or prevent their recurrence. It may be used as a stand-alone treatment or in conjunction with surgery, chemotherapy, or both. Radiation is often used before surgery to reduce a tumor (neoadjuvant treatment) or after surgery to stop the development of residual cancer cells (adjuvant therapy). Radiation may also be used in conjunction with chemotherapy (chemoradiation) to kill cancer cells.

Radiation therapy may be used to alleviate the pain caused by advanced cancer in patients. Tumors that cause discomfort or interfere with eating and drinking are examples of this.

Radiation Therapy Types

Radiation treatment is administered by our physicians in a number of ways, depending on the kind of cancer, the location of the tumour, and if it has spread.

The most frequent type of treatment is external-beam radiation therapy. It is delivered to the body by a machine, most often in the form of x-rays, although it may also take the form of charged particles known as protons or other kinds of energy.

Image-guided radiation treatment, intensity-modulated radiation therapy, stereotactic body radiation therapy, hypofractionated radiation therapy, and proton therapy are all examples of external-beam radiation therapy.