Radiation Therapy

Radiation therapy is a type of cancer treatment that uses beams of intense energy to
kill cancer cells. Radiation therapy most often uses X-rays, but protons or other types
of energy also can be used.

The term "radiation therapy" most often refers to external beam radiation therapy.
During this type of radiation, the high-energy beams come from a machine outside of
your body that aims the beams at a precise point on your body. During a different
type of radiation treatment called brachytherapy (brak-e-THER-uh-pee), radiation is
placed inside your body.

Radiation therapy damages cells by destroying the genetic material that controls how
cells grow and divide. While both healthy and cancerous cells are damaged by
radiation therapy, the goal of radiation therapy is to destroy as few normal, healthy
cells as possible. Normal cells can often repair much of the damage caused by
radiation.

Mayo Clinic's approach

Why it's done

More than half of all people with cancer receive radiation therapy as part of their
cancer treatment. Doctors use radiation therapy to treat just about every type of
cancer. Radiation therapy is also useful in treating some noncancerous (benign)
tumors.

How radiation therapy is used in people with cancer

Your doctor may suggest radiation therapy as an option at different times during your
cancer treatment and for different reasons, including:

 As the only (primary) treatment for cancer

 Before surgery, to shrink a cancerous tumor (neoadjuvant therapy)

  After surgery, to stop the growth of any remaining cancer cells (adjuvant
therapy)

 In combination with other treatments, such as chemotherapy, to destroy cancer

cells

 In advanced cancer to alleviate symptoms caused by the cancer

Risks

Radiation therapy side effects depend on which part of your body is being exposed
to radiation and how much radiation is used. You may experience no side effects, or
you may experience several. Most side effects are temporary, can be controlled and
generally disappear over time once treatment has ended.

Part of body being Common side effects

treated

Source: National Cancer Institute, 2016

Any part Hair loss at treatment site (sometimes permanent), skin

irritation at treatment site, fatigue

Head and neck Dry mouth, thickened saliva, difficulty swallowing, sore
throat, changes in the way food tastes, nausea, mouth
sores, tooth decay

Chest Difficulty swallowing, cough, shortness of breath

Abdomen Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea

 Part of body being Common side effects
treated

Pelvis Diarrhea, bladder irritation, frequent urination, sexual

dysfunction

Some side effects may develop later. For example, in rare circumstances a new
cancer (second primary cancer) that's different from the first one treated with
radiation may develop years later. Ask your doctor about potential side effects, both
short and long term, that may occur after your treatment.

How you prepare

Before you undergo external beam radiation therapy, your health care team guides
you through a planning process to ensure that radiation reaches the precise spot in
your body where it's needed. Planning typically includes:

 Radiation simulation. During simulation, your radiation therapy team works

with you to find a comfortable position for you during treatment. It's imperative
that you lie still during treatment, so finding a comfortable position is vital. To do
this, you'll lie on the same type of table that's used during radiation therapy.
Cushions and restraints are used to position you in the right way and to help
you hold still. Your radiation therapy team will mark the area of your body that
will receive the radiation. Depending on your situation, you may receive
temporary marking with a marker or you may receive small permanent tattoos.

 Planning scans. Your radiation therapy team will have you undergo
computerized tomography (CT) scans to determine the area of your body to be
treated.

After the planning process, your radiation therapy team decides what type of
radiation and what dose you'll receive based on your type and stage of cancer, your
general health, and the goals for your treatment.

The precise dose and focus of radiation beams used in your treatment is carefully
planned to maximize the radiation to your cancer cells and minimize the harm to
surrounding healthy tissue.
What you can expect

External beam radiation therapy

External beam radiation therapy is usually conducted using a linear accelerator — a
machine that directs high-energy beams of radiation into your body.

As you lie on a table, the linear accelerator moves around you to deliver radiation
from several angles. The linear accelerator can be adjusted for your particular
situation so that it delivers the precise dose of radiation your doctor has ordered.

You typically receive external beam radiation on an outpatient basis five days a week
over a certain period of time. In most instances, treatments are usually spread out
over several weeks to allow your healthy cells to recover in between radiation
therapy sessions.

Expect each treatment session to last approximately 10 to 30 minutes. In some

cases, a single treatment may be used to help relieve pain or other symptoms
associated with more-advanced cancers.
During a treatment session, you'll lie down in the position determined during your
radiation simulation session. You might be positioned with molds to hold you in
place.

The linear accelerator machine may rotate around your body to reach the target from
different directions. The machine makes a buzzing sound.

You'll lie still and breathe normally during the treatment, which takes only a few
minutes. For some patients with lung or breast cancer, you might be asked to hold
your breath while the machine delivers the treatment.

Your radiation therapy team stays nearby in a room with video and audio
connections so that you can talk to each other. You should speak up if you feel
uncomfortable, but you shouldn't feel any pain during your radiation therapy session.

Results

If you're receiving radiation to a tumor, your doctor may have you undergo periodic
scans after your treatment to see how your cancer has responded to radiation
therapy.

In some cases, your cancer may respond to treatment right away. In other cases, it
may take weeks or months for your cancer to respond. Some people aren't helped
by radiation therapy.