Proven Technologies
If you have been referred for radiation therapy it can be overwhelming. Which radiation oncology center should you choose? What does it mean to receive radiation?
Radiation therapy is just one kind of several different cancer treatments, and is often used in conjunction with other treatments like chemotherapy, surgery, or immunotherapy. Radiation therapy uses radiation to kill cancer cells and destroy the ability of tumors to grow and expand. It is highly effective, and with modern technologies it is possible to precisely map and target cancer cells in order to reduce damage to nearby healthy cells and tissue.
Most radiation treatments involve machines that aim high-energy beams from outside your body to a precise point within it but other types, such as brachytherapy, involve placing a small solid implant within your body to directly target cancer.
Rather than delivering a large dose of radiation all at once patients receive small regular doses, often in daily visits Monday through Friday with weekend breaks to allow healthy cells to recover. A full cycle of treatment varies, but commonly is at least 5-8 weeks in length. Because it can be difficult to commute long distances for daily treatment most patients look for a radiation oncology center close to home.
Radiation Therapy Services
We offer five different types of radiation therapy services, including both external and internal radiotherapy. Discuss with your team about which treatment may be best for your healthcare journey.
TrueBeam®
TrueBeam Radiation Therapy is a type of linear accelerator used to deliver precise external beam radiation. This technology can treat cancer anywhere in the body using image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) and radiosurgery. TrueBeam® combines imaging and beam delivery with technology that rotates around patients to accurately and precisely target tumors from nearly any angle.
IGRT
Image-Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT) combines three-dimensional images with the precise technology of either 3D-CRT or IMRT to pinpoint and treat cancerous tumors. The images allow the cancer specialists to precisely localize the tumor each time radiation therapy is administered. This improves both accuracy of delivery and safety by reducing radiation exposure to other areas of the body including nearby tissue and organs. IGRT is used to treat tumors in areas of the body that are prone to movement, such as the lungs, liver, and prostate gland, as well as tumors located close to critical organs and tissues.
RapidArc®
Volumetric arc therapy (VMAT) is an advanced form of IMRT that allows a targeted, 3-D dose of radiation to be delivered directly to a tumor. The machine that delivers radiation can deliver the dose to the entire tumor in a 360-degree rotation, up to eight times faster than IMRT alone. This means more radiation is delivered to the tumor and less to the nearby healthy tissues, typically in less than two minutes.
Brachytherapy
Brachytherapy, is a form of radiation therapy where a temporary or permanent radioactive implant is placed inside the patient. This makes it possible to place a higher dose of radiation near the tumor, while reducing radiation exposure to other parts of the body. The radiation is delivered either by needles inserted into the tissue, or by a special applicator placed into a body cavity near the tumor. Special applicators could include tubes, capsules, or balloon-like material. Depending on the type of cancer and treatment, the implants can be left in place anywhere from a few minutes to a few months.
IMRT
IMRT is an advanced form of external radiation treatment that allows precise targeting of tumor cells. The CT simulator localization scan or other three-dimensional images provide the radiation oncologist with an understanding of the shape and location of the tumor. With 3D planning, the radiation oncologist specifies the dose from various beams and sums up those doses to calculate the dose to tumor and normal tissue (forward planning). With IMRT, the radiation oncologist specifies the dose desired to give the tumor and the doses acceptable to the normal tissues (as low as possible). Then the computer system provides millions of alternative beam positions and the varying intensities of each beam, comparing one plan to the next until the best plan is identified. This is called inverse planning. Since each beam is broken up into many sub-beams of varying intensity the process is called intensity-modulated radiation.
SBRT
Stereotactic body radiation therapy, also known as SBRT, is a form of external beam cancer radiation treatment that delivers highly targeted doses of radiation directly to cancer cells. In comparison to other radiation therapies, such as IMRT, SBRT delivers the optimal dose of radiation over a short time period, with treatments often measured in days rather than weeks.
SBRT can sometimes be used to treat small early-stage tumors (including those in the lung, prostate, and pancreas), or cancers that have spread to the lung, liver, or spine.