One camera on the HDR after loader, another where the source enters/exits the patient and the last one monitoring the “radiation monitor” lights inside the room. It is so important to have audio and visual communication during radiation therapy treatment. Especially in HDR treatments, the treating oncology staff, particularly the doctor needs to be able to monitor the patient at all times and visually sees the source smoothly enter and exit the patient. • The survey meter needs to be turned on and tested for optimum operation before treatment • Verification of current activity of radiation source. This is so important because if the calculation of the activity is incorrect, and the patient is treated, then the patient risks being under dosed or overdosed for that treatment due to the miscalculation and incorrect treatment…
We offer advanced radiation therapy services with the Varian TrueBeam (Varian, 2015) which is a state of the art linear accelerator and currently the only one in the area. This technology allows us to precisely target the tumor by utilizing the on board imaging technology. Our radiation therapy services include stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT), image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT), intensity-modulated…
As advancements in technology grow, the options for cancer treatment improve drastically. Sterotactic radiation, cytotron, and an implant that can predict which cancer medicines work best are just a few options for cancer treatment that may have seemed impossible just 10 years ago. Sterotactic body radiation treatment is also known as ablative radiation therapy. It is a procedure…
X-rays cause bones and other structures to cast shadows due to them being denser than skin. This allows doctors and dentists alike to spot broken bones and dental problems. X-rays and other forms of radiation have a variety of uses in therapy. They are often used to kill cancerous tissues, reduce the size of a tumor, or reduce pain. For example, “radioactive iodine (specifically iodine 131) is frequently used to treat thyroid cancer, a disease that strikes about 11,000 Americans every day.…
In radiation therapy, many components go into each patient’s care. For some treatments, bolus use improves the outcome of treatment results. One of the main functions of bolus is to raise surface dose, which causes the dose to be closer to the skin.…
Interventional Radiology: Interventional radiology can use high amounts of radiation, which may not be very safe for patients. However, the technologists do all that they can do minimize the exposure to the patient. Having an interventional radiology procedure once a year is not that much radiation. However, if a patient is having an interventional radiology procedure many times in one year, that can be a lot of radiation for the patient. Interventional radiology procedures puncture the skin while inserting a wire or catheter into the patient.…
Radiation therapy, the second method, requires the application of high energy X-rays to shrink the tumor and kill the malignant cells. The rays may be applied from an external machine or by placing the radiation source directly to the affected part of the body, by means of plastic tubes. Last treatment type is the chemotherapy whereby a combination of drugs is applied to kill the cancer cells. The drugs may be administered by mouth in the capsule form or may be applied intravenously via…
A previous study reported that seven patients with osteosarcoma of the spine who received postoperative irradiation had a higher long-term survival (∼50%) than those who did not (∼10%) (Ozaki et al., 2002). Extracorporeal irradiation Among the more innovative uses of radiation in osteosarcoma treatment has been extracorporeal irradiation. Bone is taken out for irradiation and then reimplanted into the body.…
Multimodal therapy is offered to patients who cancer has not spread yet. Multimodal therapy is a combination of radiation, surgeries, and chemotherapy. If the cancer has already spread, doctors will offer palliative treatment that can help with the pain, breathing problems, and other symptoms. Patients will still be offered radiation, and chemotherapy but no major surgeries is offered. The radiation therapy helps reduce some pain and correct breathing by shrinking tumors that press on your nerves, veins, and airway.…
Radiation therapy is relatively ineffective during certain phases of the cell cycle. The synergy of RFA and radiation therapy is likely due to cells which are radiosensitized by thermal therapy. Cells remain radiosensitized for up to 24 hours, therefore the efficiency of radiation therapy is increased during that window. This effect is summarized by Dewhirst et al in his review of the effects of thermal therapy [6]. The increased effectiveness of combining multiple modes of treatment is frequently time-dependent, as described for RFA and radiation therapy.…
There are non-medical ways to treat cancer which has attracted a lot of new patients due to cost of treatment and research that shows a significant decrease in cancer symptoms. Alternative cancer treatments in the form of diets, exercise, meditation, and supposed remedies have been promoted by questionable sources for many decades (American Cancer Society, 2016). The non- medical method have not been proven to be effective at reducing, reversing, or killing cancer although many of the non-medical methods are showing increase use by patients who lack medical insurance (American Cancer Society, 2016). The mainstreamed treatments continue to show a decrease in helping cancer patients which makes non-medical treatment appealing and people are drawn…
Radiation therapy is gratifying throughout many aspects; there is a great deal to love and appreciate. Above all, I appreciate the relationship between the radiation therapists and the patients. Radiation therapists are a substantial part of a patient’s everyday life. Lengthy treatments allow radiation therapists to build an extensive rapport with patients. Therapists become a confidant; a trusted individual in which they speak to everyday.…
I had no idea what radiation therapy was until my dad was diagnosed with prostate cancer, and I went with him to a few of his treatments. I saw how the radiation therapists helped him through his fight with cancer and how they were a bright spot in a hard time of his life. From that point on I knew what I wanted to do, and I have worked to become a radiation therapist. I wanted to have a career where I could be a bright spot in peoples’ lives when they are going through what is most likely the hardest part of their life. Whenever my dad talks about his cancer experience he always mentions how he feared radiation therapy at first, but after a few treatments it was actually a bright spot in his fight against cancer.…
Cancer has many forms of treatment, but the two that are known to most are chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Chemotherapy is the use of drugs like cytotoxic and others, where as radiation therapy is the use of x-rays or other similar forms of radiation to cure cancer. Arguments can and more than likely always arise that one form of the two treatments is more beneficial and effective than the other. Considering this, the type of treatment that may be used can differ for each type of cancer, just depending on which one is more useful for the particular illness. The two treatment may differ in a few ways but the biggest one can be the side effects of each one.…
Before one is able to undergo radiation treatment the doctor calculates the total dose of radiotherapy that is needed and the number of individual doses required. There are no guidelines that explain exactly how much radiation is too much because each patient is different so it may vary. Most patients will have a computerised tomography scan in order to accurately locate the tumor. A computerised tomography scan (also known as a CT scan) uses a computer and X-rays to build detailed images of the inside of the body. Radiation therapy…