How Does Radiation Work For Cancer Treatment

External beam radiation therapy delivers radiation from a machine outside the body.

How does radiation work for cancer treatment. Radiation therapy may be given before during or after these other treatments to improve the chances that treatment will work. Radiation is essentially an invisible high energy beam. This nurse has special training in cancer treatment and can give you information about radiation treatment and managing side effects. The term radiation therapy most often refers to external beam radiation therapy.

Learn the types of therapy cancers each treats and side effects. It is the most common radiation therapy treatment for cancer. A cancer diagnosis may mean radiation therapy. Radiation therapy is a type of cancer treatment that uses beams of intense energy to kill cancer cells.

Each session is quick lasting about 15 minutes. The basics of radiation therapy. Non cancer cells on the other hand halt their cellular machinery once they recognize the dna damage and proceed to repair the damage before continuing its work. Radiation that is used for cancer treatment is usually a form of high energy x ray.

The timing of when radiation therapy is given depends on the type of cancer being treated and whether the goal of radiation therapy is to treat the cancer or ease symptoms. It shrinks tumors and kills cancer cells. This is a concept that radiation oncologists call the therapeutic ratio which is choosing the dose of radiation that maximizes cancer cell death while causing as little permanent. The goal is to destroy or damage the cancer without hurting too many healthy cells.

Radiation therapy most often uses x rays but protons or other types of energy also can be used. Radiation does not hurt sting or burn when it enters the body. Other less common forms of radiation use particles such as protons to kill cancer cells.