Radiation Therapy For Cancer

During the last few years, we have witnessed how cancer has grown into an epidemic, affecting people of all ages and physical conditions. The truth is that anybody can suffer from cancer, and the chances of surviving are based in different factors, such as how early is the disease detected. Medical statistics have shown that they are expecting more than 570,000 American cancer patients to die from the disease this current year (2011). In contrast, more treatments are being developed or improved, to increase the chance of survival. One of the oldest forms of treatment is radiation therapy for cancer, which was first discovered more than 100 years ago.

Fighting Cancer With the X-Factor

When x-rays were first discovered, researchers found that it had an effect on people’s cells and sometimes even on the skin. Radiation was used to treat lupus and other types of skin deformations, but it was until the 1900s that physicians began to carry out radiation therapy for cancer. The term “X” was used by physician Wilhelm Röntgen to describe the factor that inexplicably affected the cells. Today, it’s easier to witness how radiation therapy is capable of destroying those abnormal or cancerous cells; the damage can be done either directly or indirectly. Nonetheless, radiation therapy for cancer doesn’t always destroy the cancerous cells, but rather slows them down a bit and prevents them from dividing uncontrollably. The patient can live a normal life for months or even years, unless the cancer returns.

Types of Radiation Therapy

Radiation therapy for cancer can essentially be administered two ways: externally and internally, which means that there are two basic types of therapy. When a patient receives external radiation therapy for cancer, the radiation usually comes from a machine, and it’s administered a certain amount of times each day. Depending on the overall health condition of the patient, they might be able to attend each treatment on an outpatient basis, which means that they won’t remain hospitalized. On the other hand, when a patient receives internal radiation therapy for cancer, the doctors insert an implant that contains radioactive material close to the actual cancer. The patient will typically be asked to stay on an inpatient basis for a couple of days; if the levels of radiation are high, he or she won’t be able to see any visitors.

Cancer Relapse

After a patient receives radiation therapy for cancer, there is always a chance of relapsing, which means having the cancer return. If a cancer remains untreated, it will certainly kill the person sooner or later, but when the patient receives radiation therapy, the cancer might disappear for good. However, there is no way of knowing for sure if the cancer will return or not, because this depends on different factors such as the person’s genetics (which can’t be changed). After a patient has undergone radiation therapy for cancer and the cells are successfully destroyed, they need to be checked periodically in order to detect any changes in the cells, which would indicate a relapse.