Skip navigation
MedlinePlus Trusted Health Information for You U.S. National Library of MedicineNational Institutes of Health
Contact Us FAQs Site Map About MedlinePlus
español Home Health Topics Drug Information Medical Encyclopedia Dictionary News Directories Other Resources

 

Medical Encyclopedia

Other encyclopedia topics:  A-Ag  Ah-Ap  Aq-Az  B-Bk  Bl-Bz  C-Cg  Ch-Co  Cp-Cz  D-Di  Dj-Dz  E-Ep  Eq-Ez  F  G  H-Hf  Hg-Hz  I-In  Io-Iz  J  K  L-Ln  Lo-Lz  M-Mf  Mg-Mz  N  O  P-Pl  Pm-Pz  Q  R  S-Sh  Si-Sp  Sq-Sz  T-Tn  To-Tz  U  V  W  X  Y  Z  0-9 

Radiation therapy

Printer-friendly versionEmail this page to a friend
Contents of this page:

Illustrations

Radiation therapy
Radiation therapy

Alternative names    Return to top

Therapy - radiation; Radiotherapy

Definition    Return to top

A treatment approach that uses radiation to destroy cancer cells.

Information    Return to top

Cancer cells usually multiply faster than other cells in the body. Since radiation is most harmful to rapidly reproducing cells, radiation damages cancer cells more than the normal cells of the body. It prevents these cells from continuing to reproduce and thus prevents the tumor from growing further.

Unfortunately, rapidly dividing healthy cells can also be killed by this process. Skin and hair are some of the tissues most noticeably affected by radiation treatment, resulting in skin lesions, burning, redness, and possibly hair loss.

Radiation therapy is used to fight many types of cancer. Often it is used to shrink the tumor as much as possible before surgery to remove the cancer. Radiation can also be given after surgery to prevent the cancer from coming back.

For certain types of cancer, radiation is the only treatment needed. Radiation treatment may also be used to provide temporary relief of symptoms, or to treat malignancies (cancers) that cannot be removed with surgery.

The following are some commonly used radioactive substances:

Radiation therapy can have many side effects. These side effects depend on the part of the body being irradiated and the dose and schedule of the radiation:

Update Date: 7/19/2004

Updated by: Christopher M. Iannuzzi, M.D., Department of Radiation Oncology, Saint Vincent's Medical Center, Bridgeport, CT. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

adam.com logo

The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed physician should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Call 911 for all medical emergencies. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. Copyright 2002 A.D.A.M., Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited.