First-line treatment is usually the standard treatment (the "gold standard") given when someone is diagnosed with a particular disease or condition, such as lung cancer. In other words, it is likely the treatment most oncologists would first choose in treating someone.
When is the best time to get radiation therapy?
Radiation therapy may be given before, during, or after these other treatments to improve the chances that treatment will work. 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.
When is radiation therapy used to treat 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)
How long does radiation therapy take to work for cancer?
Typically, people have treatment sessions 5 times per week, Monday through Friday. This schedule usually continues for 3 to 9 weeks, depending on your personal treatment plan. This type of radiation therapy targets only the tumor. But it will affect some healthy tissue surrounding the tumor.
What are the steps in radiation therapy?
1 Your radiation therapy team. A highly trained medical team will work together to provide you with the best possible care. ... 2 Before treatment. Meeting with your radiation oncologist. ... 3 During treatment. External-beam radiation therapy delivers radiation from a machine outside the body. ... 4 After treatment. ... 5 More Information
At what stage of cancer is radiotherapy used?
Radiotherapy may be used in the early stages of cancer or after it has started to spread. It can be used to: try to cure the cancer completely (curative radiotherapy) make other treatments more effective – for example, it can be combined with chemotherapy or used before surgery (neo-adjuvant radiotherapy)
How soon after diagnosis does radiation start?
How soon you start radiation depends on if you need chemotherapy. Radiation after surgery usually begins in three to eight weeks. For women undergoing chemotherapy, radiation will start about a month after. Depending on your prognosis, radiation can last for days or weeks.
What is first line and second line treatment?
Second-line treatment is treatment for a disease or condition after the initial treatment (first-line treatment) has failed, stopped working, or has side effects that aren't tolerated. It's important to understand "lines of treatment" and how they differ from first line treatment and can play a role in clinical trials.
When should radiation therapy be used?
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.
How many sessions of radiotherapy is normal?
Most people have 5 treatments each week (1 treatment a day from Monday to Friday, with a break at the weekend). But sometimes treatment may be given more than once a day or over the weekend.
What is the two week pathway?
A 'Two Week Wait' referral is a request from your General Practitioner (GP) to ask the hospital for an urgent appointment for you, because you have symptoms that might indicate that you have cancer.
What does first-line of treatment mean?
THAYR-uh-pee) The first treatment given for a disease. It is often part of a standard set of treatments, such as surgery followed by chemotherapy and radiation. When used by itself, first-line therapy is the one accepted as the best treatment.
What is third line treatment?
Treatment that is given when both initial treatment (first-line therapy) and subsequent treatment (second-line therapy) don't work, or stop working.
What is the success rate of radiation therapy?
“When patients are treated with modern external-beam radiation therapy, the overall cure rate was 93.3% with a metastasis-free survival rate at 5 years of 96.9%.
Why would radiation therapy be recommended?
Radiation therapy kills cancer cells or slows their growth by damaging their DNA. Radiation therapy (also called radiotherapy) is a cancer treatment that uses high doses of radiation to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors.
Is radiation worse than chemo?
The radiation beams change the DNA makeup of the tumor, causing it to shrink or die. This type of cancer treatment has fewer side effects than chemotherapy since it only targets one area of the body.
When do you use chemotherapy vs radiation?
Chemotherapy and radiation therapy are both treatments for cancer – the uncontrolled growth and spread of cells to surrounding tissues. Chemotherapy, or “chemo,” uses special drugs to shrink or kill cancer cells. Radiation therapy, or “radiation,” kills these cells with high-energy beams such as X-rays or protons.
When was radiation first used?
The history of radiation therapy or radiotherapy can be traced back to experiments made soon after the discovery of X-rays (1895) , when it was shown that exposure to radiation produced cutaneous burns. Influenced by electrotherapy and escharotics — the medical application of caustic substances — doctors began using radiation to treat growths and lesions produced by diseases such as lupus, basal cell carcinoma, and epithelioma. Radiation was generally believed to have bactericidal properties, so when radium was discovered, in addition to treatments similar to those used with x-rays, it was also used as an additive to medical treatments for diseases such as tuberculosis where there were resistant bacilli.
Why did doctors use radiation?
Influenced by electrotherapy and escharotics — the medical application of caustic substances — doctors began using radiation to treat growths and lesions produced by diseases such as lupus, basal cell carcinoma, and epithelioma.
What was the first treatment for tuberculosis?
After using radium in the surgical treatment of tuberculosis, researchers including Béla Augustin and A. de Szendeffy soon developed a treatment using radioactive methyholated iodine, which was patented under the name dioradin (formed from "iodine and radium") in 1911. Application of this treatment was referred to as iodo-radium therapy, and involved injecting dioradin intramuscularly. It seemed promising to the developers, because in several cases, fever and hemoptysis had disappeared. Inhalation of iodine alone had been an experimental treatment for tuberculosis in France between 1830 and 1870.
Why is radium used in bath salts?
The radium commonly used in bath salts, waters, and muds was in low-grade preparations, due to the expense, and their usefulness in curative solutions was questioned, since it had been agreed upon by physicians that radium could only be used successfully in high doses. It was believed that even radiation emanation at higher doses than were useful would cause no harm, because the radioactive deposits were found to have been absorbed and released in urine and waste within a period of three hours.
What are the advantages of radium xrays?
The most marked effects produced with radium therapy were with lupus, ulcerous growths, and keloid, particularly because they could be applied more specifically to tissues than with x-rays. Radium was generally to be preferred when a localized reaction was desired, while for x-rays when a large area needed to be treated. Radium was also believed to be bactericidal, while x-rays were not. Because they could not be applied locally, x-rays were also found to have worse cosmetic effects than radium when treating malignancies. In certain cases, a combination of x-ray and radium therapy was suggested. In many skin diseases, the ulcers would be treated with radium and the surrounding areas with x-rays so it would positively affect the lymphatic systems.
What is radium used for?
Radiation was generally believed to have bactericidal properties, so when radium was discovered, in addition to treatments similar to those used with x-rays, it was also used as an additive to medical treatments for diseases such as tuberculosis where there were resistant bacilli.
What is particle therapy?
Particle therapy is heavily used in Nuclear Radiology / Nuclear Medicine (radiopharmaceutical therapeutic agents are based on alpha particles, beta particles, or auger electrons), and to some extent in Radiation Oncology (external electron therapy and recent emerging modalities for external proton therapy).
How long does radiation therapy last?
It is the most common radiation therapy treatment for cancer. Each session is quick, lasting about 15 minutes. Radiation does not hurt, sting, or burn when it enters the body.
What to expect when getting radiation therapy?
What to Expect When Having Radiation Therapy. It is normal to feel worried or overwhelmed when you learn that you will need radiation therapy. However, learning more about this type of cancer treatment may help you feel more prepared and comfortable.
What type of doctor is responsible for radiation therapy?
Radiation oncologist. This type of doctor specializes in giving radiation therapy to treat cancer. A radiation oncologist oversees radiation therapy treatments. They work closely with other team members to develop the treatment plan. Radiation oncology nurse.
What is simulation in radiation therapy?
Simulating and planning treatment. Your first radiation therapy session is a simulation. This means it is a practice run without giving radiation therapy. Your team will use imaging scans to identify the tumor location.
Why is it important to be in the same position for radiation?
It is important for your body to be in the same position for each treatment. Your radiation oncology team cares about your comfort. Talk with the team to find a comfortable position that you can be in every time you come in for radiation therapy.
How often should you check for radiation?
During your treatment, your radiation oncologist will check how well it is working. Typically, this will happen at least once a week. If needed, they may adjust your treatment plan.
What is informed consent for radiation?
Giving permission for radiation therapy. If you choose to receive radiation therapy, your health care team will ask you to sign an "informed consent" form. Signing the document means: Your team gave you information about your treatment options. You choose to have radiation therapy.
What is first line treatment?
First-line treatment or therapy simply refers to the initial, or first treatment recommended for a disease or illness. This may also be referred to as primary treatment, initial treatment, or induction therapy. With many conditions, including cancer, there are many possible treatments that could be effective.
What is the first line of treatment for lung cancer?
First-line treatment is usually the standard treatment (the "gold standard") given when someone is diagnosed with a particular disease or condition , such as lung cancer. In other words, it is likely the treatment most oncologists would first choose in treating someone. That said, there are no general "rules" stating which treatment has to absolutely come first, and in addition to that, it's important to work with your oncologist to choose the treatment that is best for you as an individual. Only you can be your own advocate and select the treatments which offer you the best outcome while minimizing the side effects you are willing to tolerate.
What is the difference between first line and second line?
In contrast, second-line treatments are used when the first-line treatment failed to improve a cancer, or if it worked for a while and then the cancer progressed, and tend to be less effective.
What are complementary treatments for cancer?
In this setting, therapies such as acupuncture, meditation, massage, and yoga are used in an integrative fashion—that is, they are used along with traditional treatments such as chemotherapy. These complementary treatments may help some people cope with the side effects of cancer and cancer treatments.
What is alternative treatment?
In this setting, therapies such as acupuncture, meditation, massage, and yoga are used in an integrative fashion—that is, they are used along with traditional treatments such as chemotherapy. These complementary treatments may help some people cope with the side effects of cancer and cancer treatments.
Is neoadjuvant therapy considered a first line treatment?
Neoadjuvant therapy, chemotherapy given before surgery to reduce the size of a tumor, or adjuvant therapy, given after surgery to reduce the risk of recurrence, are considered components of first-line therapy in this setting. First-Line vs. Second-Line Treatment. In contrast to first-line treatment, second-line treatment is usually ...
Is second line treatment the same as first line?
In contrast to first-line treatment, second-line treatment is usually a treatment which is chosen after first-line treatment has failed to achieve the goal (either it doesn't work or all, or it works for a period of time and then stops working), or has side effects requiring you to stop using that treatment. Second-line treatments are often inferior to first-line treatments but not always. For example, with metastatic breast cancer, second-line therapy tends not to control the cancer for as long a period of time as first-line therapy. In some cases, there are two treatments (or more) that may offer very similar results (and have similar side effects), and second-line treatment may be equally effective to first-line therapy.
How long does radiation treatment last?
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.
Why do people get radiation therapy?
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.
What is the treatment for cancer?
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 is a type of cancer treatment that uses beams of intense energy to kill cancer cells. Radiation therapy most often uses X-rays, but ...
What type of radiation is used in X-rays?
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.
How does radiation damage cells?
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.
How long does it take for cancer to respond to radiation?
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.
What is the purpose of neoadjuvant therapy?
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.
Overview
The history of radiation therapy or radiotherapy can be traced back to experiments made soon after the discovery of X-rays (1895), when it was shown that exposure to radiation produced cutaneous burns. Influenced by electrotherapy and escharotics — the medical application of caustic substances — doctors began using radiation to treat growths and lesions produced by diseases such as lupus, basal cell carcinoma, and epithelioma. Radiation was generally believed to have ba…
Early development of radiotherapy (1895–1905)
The imaging properties of x-rays were discovered, their practical uses for research and diagnostics were immediately apparent, and soon their use spread in the medical field. X-rays were used to diagnose bone fractures, heart disease, and phthisis. Inventive procedures for different diagnostic purposes were created, such as filling digestive cavities with bismuth, which allowed them to be seen through tissue and bone.
Further development and the use of radium (1905–1915)
Because of the excitement over the new treatment, literature about the therapeutic effects of x-rays often exaggerated the propensity to cure different diseases. Reports of the fact that in some cases treatment worsened some of the patients' conditions were ignored in favor of hopeful optimism. Henry G. Piffard referred to these practitioners as "radiomaniacs" and "radiografters". It …
Commercialization, quackery, and the end of an era (1915–1935)
Widespread commercial exploitation of radium only began in 1913, by which time more efficient methods of extracting radium from pitchblende had been discovered and the mining of radium had taken off.
The radium commonly used in bath salts, waters, and muds was in low-grade preparations, due to the expense, and their usefulness in curative solutions wa…
Radiation therapy today (1935–)
"Radiation therapy" defined as the utilization of electromagnetic or particle radiation in medical therapy has 3 main branches, including external beam radiation therapy(teletherapy), locoregional ablative therapy (such as brachytherapy (sealed source radiation therapy), selective internal radiotherapy (SIRT), radiofrequency ablation, microwave ablation, and optical therapy), and systemic therapy (i.e. radiopharmaceutical therapy, such as radioligand therapy and unsealed so…
Notes
1. ^ Pusey 1900, p. 302
2. ^ Kassabian 1907, p. 501
3. ^ Coe 1912, p. 302
4. ^ Singer 1914, p. xxv
5. ^ Mould 1993
Ct Simulation
Treatment Planning Process
Quality Assurance
Set-Up
Daily Treatments
- Treatments are often given once a day, Monday through Friday, for a number of weeks. Sometimes, twice daily radiation treatments will be done. It takes about 5 minutes to get your radiation treatment, but you will likely be scheduled in a 15-30 minute appointment time. With set up and treatment you will be in the department for about an hour each d...
On-Treatment Visit
End-Of-Treatment Visit
Follow-Up Care
Understanding First-Line Treatment
Questions to Ask
Alternative and Complementary Treatments