The Department of
Radiation Oncology use ionizing radiation in the treatment of cancer and
provides advanced personalized radiation oncology care to cancer patients,
specific to their individual tumor and clinical situation. This can be done in a variety of
ways, depending on the nature of your cancer. We offer a comprehensive range of radiation
therapy services comprising standard treatment modalities as well as the latest
radiotherapy units tailored to each individual patient's needs in our
department. We aim to deliver the best care for
our patients.
TREATMENT PROCESS:
·
Consultation
The first step is the
consultation, which usually occurs at the request of the surgeon or medical
oncologist. During the consultation, the radiation oncologist reviews all the
medical information about your diagnosis of cancer. A physical examination then
follows. Afterwards, you and your family meet with the radiation oncologist to
discuss the rationale, benefits, and side effects of radiation therapy.
·
Simulation
It is during the
simulation process that the radiation oncologist “simulates” or decides upon
how best to treat your cancer. A computerized tomography (CT) scanner
facilitates the process by obtaining special x-ray pictures of the cancer in your
body. These scans are usually computed tomography (CT) scans, but they can also
include magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET),
and ultrasound scans. During simulation and daily treatments, it is necessary
to ensure that the patient will be in exactly the same position every day
relative to the machine delivering the treatment or doing the imaging. Body
molds, head masks, or other devices may be constructed for an individual
patient to make it easier for a patient to stay still. Temporary skin marks and
even tattoos are used to help with precise patient positioning.
·
Treatment Planning
The treatment
planning team consists of the radiation oncologist, medical physicist and
dosimetrist. The team is specially trained to analyze various radiation therapy
techniques in order to treat your cancer in the best possible way. Our center use
state-of-the-art treatment planning computers to customize a unique plan for
each individual patient. The medical physicist tests the plan for precision and
accuracy. Once the radiation oncologist
has approved the final plan the treatment begins.
·
Treatment
There are many
different ways to deliver radiation therapy, and radiation oncologist will
discuss which is best for you. Often, radiation therapy is given concurrently
with chemotherapy. Radiation oncologist
will review what you can expect from treatment and the anticipated side
effects.
·
Follow-up
An important part of
the radiation therapy experience is the time following treatment. The radiation oncologist helps monitor your
progress after radiation therapy.
Side Effects:
The
side effects of radiation therapy vary depending on the type of cancer being
treated, the area being treated, and the length and purpose of treatment. Side
effects can also vary from patient to patient, even for those undergoing the
same type of treatment. While some patients report no side effects at all, most
people having radiation therapy will have some mild side effects during and/or
just after treatment.
Many
patients experience fatigue which builds up throughout the treatment period,
especially if the treatment course takes several weeks. Depending on the site
treated, other common side effects include skin redness and soreness, bowel
upset, bladder symptoms, nausea, and sore throat. There are medications, creams
and other measures to help with many of these common side effects.
OUR
TEAM:
The Department of Radiation Oncology service starts with
our team of radiation oncologists, physicists, nurses, therapists and other
staff working together to determine and deliver the ideal treatment for each
patient. Our experienced and enthusiastic team members are dedicated to improve
the health of our patients through safe and effective care.
Our multidisciplinary team works collaboratively to
design an individual treatment plan for each patient. The treatment team
typically includes radiation oncologists, medical physicists, radiation
oncology nurses and radiation therapists. However, depending on the type of cancer,
other cancer center specialists may join the team as well.
We
are offering a full range of radiation therapy options in our department.
TYPES OF TREATMENT:
·
External Beam Radiation Therapy (EBRT)
External beam radiation
therapy (EBRT) is a type of radiation therapy that directs a beam of radiation
from outside the body, toward cancerous tissues inside the body. The LINAC
is used to treat all body sites, using Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy
(IMRT), Image Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT), Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS)
and Stereotactic Body Radio Therapy (SBRT), as well as conventional techniques.
·
Image Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT)
Image-Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT) is one of the most advanced innovations
in cancer technology available. IGRT
refers to the use of advanced imaging (2D and 3D) to assure that the
positioning of the tumor will match the highly conformal dose delivery that can
be achieved on state of the art machines.
·
Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT)
Intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT)
is an advanced radiation technique employing recent innovations in imaging and
computer technology. IMRT planning starts with tumor target and normal tissue
definition, followed by inverse planning. Using computer optimization, multiple
small fields are designed to give a complex and conformal radiation dose
distribution, which provides the prescription dose to the tumor target and
minimizes dose to regional normal tissues.
·
Three Dimensional Conformal Radiation Therapy (3DCRT)
Three dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3DCRT) is a complex process that
begins with the creation of individualized, 3D digital data sets of patient
tumors and normal adjacent anatomy.Treatment plans for each patient are
individually designed. Using our state of the art technology, we are able to
merge the treatment planning CT scan with diagnostic quality images, such as
MRI and PET scans, to maximize the precision of our tumor targeting. Our linear
accelerators which are Clinac IX and Trilogy equipped with computer controlled
beam shaping devices called multileaf collimators.
·
Stereotactic Radiosurgery
(SRS)
Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) refers to a single or several
steretactic radiation therapy treatments of the brain or the spine. It is a
specialized technique that allows use extremely focused beams of radiation to
destroy certain types of tumors using higher doses than with daily radiation
treatments.
·
Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT)
Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) is
a treatment procedure similar to stereotactic radiosurgery for the central
nervous system, except that SBRT treats tumors outside of the central nervous
system.
Our
department offers a full range of radiation therapy equipment, including simulator (with CT capability), two linear
accelerators (Trilogy and Clinac IX), two and three dimensional treatment
planning computers.
·
TRILOGY
Trilogy is a Linear Accelerator (LINAC) that comprises three
different radiotherapy methods; namely, IGRT, IMRT and SRT/SRC. Trilogy is used
for both diagnosis and treatment purposes, and provides significant advantages
to the patient.
·
CLINAC IX
Designed to deliver a wide range of imaging
and patient treatment options, the Clinac system offers advanced features to
facilitate state-of-the-art treatments including IMRT, IGRT, VMAT, RapidArc and
stereotactic radiosurgery.