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Common Questions |
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What is Cancer? |
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Cancer develops when cells in the body begin to grow when in an uncontrolled manner. The cause of cancer lies within the genetic building blocks (DNA) of a person’s cells. If the DNA becomes sufficiently disorganized or damaged, cancer may develop. Some cancers form tumors. Other cancers, like leukemia, do not.
A tumor is a mass of cells. Tumors are either benign or malignant. Benign tumors usually grow very slowly and generally do not spread. Doctors can usually remove most of them, if needed. In the beginning, malignant tumors (generally thought of as ‘cancerous’ tumors) usually stay in the organ where the cancer started. This is called localized disease. Cancers are most curable before they spread. This is why early detection is so important.
As cancers continue to grow, they are more likely to spread (metastasize) and are much more difficult to control or cure. When cancer cells metastasize, they will invade normal, healthy tissue and begin to take it over.
Radiation therapy affects the genetic material in cells and prevents them from dividing to make new cells. This slows the growth of the cancer, or may stop it altogether. |
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What is Staging? |
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Staging is the process of finding out how far the cancer has spread. Staging the cancer is a vital step in determining your treatment choices, and it will also give your health care team a clearer idea of the outlook for recovery.
Staging can take time, and people are usually anxious to begin treatment soon. Do not worry that the staging process is taking up treatment time. Keep in mind that by staging the cancer, you and your health care team will know which treatments are likely to be the most effective before beginning the treatment.
There is more than one system for staging. After looking at your test results, your doctor will tell you the stage of your cancer. Be sure to ask your doctor any questions you might have about what the stage of your cancer means and how it will impact your treatment options. |
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What is Radiation Oncology / Therapy? |
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Radiation Oncology is the treatment modality that uses radiation to treat cancer. Many forms of radiation are available, and your treatment choices depend on the type of cancer and its location.
Different cancers react different ways, so treatments vary for specific types of cancers.
Radiation affects both normal and cancerous cells. By using specific schedules for radiotherapy, cancer cells are killed but normal cells are allowed to recover. In addition, through careful treatment planning, we can direct radiation to the cancer while sparing most normal tissues.
Radiation therapy is one of four major treatment protocols for many cancers. It can be used alone or in combination with surgery, chemotherapy (medicine/medical oncology), and immunotherapy (strengthening the body’s own natural defenses).
When you receive radiotherapy from a machine, you will never be radioactive. If you are hospitalized for insertion of cesium or other nuclear medicines, you will be kept in a protected room until the sources are removed, or when you no longer pose a hazard to your family and friends. |
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| Q: |
What Can I Expect During My Consultation Visit? |
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Your first visit to the Radiation Oncology center will be a busy one. Plan to spend about 1 to 2 hours in the clinic for your first visit.
When you arrive at the center, check in with the receptionist and then have a seat in the waiting room. You may need to fill out a health questionnaire. You may want to bring a list of any medications you are currently taking. Often, your medical records and x-rays have arrived before you and have already been reviewed by the doctor. If you have brought any with you, the receptionist will ask you for them when you check in.
You will be called into an exam room when the doctor is ready to see you. You will have your heartbeat, respiration, blood pressure, and weight checked. During this visit, you will discuss the daily routine of your radiation therapy treatment.
To develop the treatment plan your radiation therapy team will follow, your doctor will review your medical records, discuss your medical history with you, and perform a physical exam. You will need to undress for the physical exam and wear a hospital gown. Your doctor may order additional blood tests or imaging tests if needed. |
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| Q: |
What Can I Expect During My Consultation Visit? |
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Your radiation therapy, also called your ‘treatment course,’ begins with a planning visit. To ensure the radiation therapy you receive can be given the same way each time, your treatment team will fine tune the location of the treatment and decide on the exact position you’ll be in during each treatment.
Your doctor and radiation therapy team use a special procedure called simulation (sometimes referred to as CT simulation) to determine your exact treatment position. The simulator and laser lights are used as guides to move you into correct position. The radiation therapy team then makes notes in your chart so you will be placed in the correct position each time you receive a treatment. Your skin will be marked over the treatment area so each treatment will target the same area. A photograph will be taken of these markings and placed in your medical chart.
While the simulation uses CT images, or x-ray images, to determine the treatment area, the images are not used to any sort of diagnosis or treatment assessment. They are only to ensure you are exactly where you need to be to treat your cancer. Occasionally, the treatment area may change as the treatment progresses. When this happens, your radiation oncologist and radiation therapy team may change your treatment lines, and a new planning visit may need to be done. |
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| Q: |
What Can I Expect During My Consultation Visit? |
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Each visit takes 15 to 30 minutes. Additionally, you will meet with your doctor regularly during your treatment course to discuss your progress.
Undergoing treatment is very similar to having an x-ray examination. The treatment will cause no pain or discomfort.
During your treatment, your radiation therapist will be in continual contact with you. You will be monitored through closed-circuit television. There is also a two-way intercom system so you can communicate with your therapist. If you should have any problem, we will turn off the machine immediately and help you. When the machine is turned off, the radiation stops immediately.
Normally, treatments are given daily, Monday through Friday, with a rest on weekends. Your therapist will notify you of any holidays that you will not receive treatment. We will try our best to make your daily appointments convenient for you. If you find it necessary to change your treatment time, please ask your therapist. |
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| Q: |
What About Side Effects During my Treatment? |
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There are side effects from radiation therapy. They generally happen to the skin and tissues in the treatment area. The radiation oncologist, radiation nurses, and therapists will discuss specific side effects with you when you start your treatments.
One side effect of radiation therapy is that it may cause you to feel fatigued. Fatigue occurs in a majority of people with cancer and can be described as a condition that cause distress and decreased ability to function due to lack of energy. If you become fatigued, make sure that you are able to rest adequately. Fatigue is common after chemotherapy or radiation therapy and may persist over a period of weeks to several months.
If your side effects are bothering you, or you are experiencing problems you did not expect, please tell any member of your radiation therapy team. This includes the nurses, therapists, nutritionists, and physicians.
A common misconception is that a side effect of radiation therapy is it makes you radioactive. This is not true if you are receiving your radiotherapy from a machine. If you receive brachytherapy and are hospitalized for insertion of cesium or radioactive sources, you will be kept in a protected room until the sources are removed or no longer pose any hazard to family or friends. |
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| Q: |
Do I Need to Limit My Activities During Treatment? |
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We encourage you to carry out your daily activities as much as possible, as long as you do not feel stressed or too fatigued. Many patients continue to work without experiencing adverse effects. Remember to balance your daily activities with adequate rest. Your radiation oncologist will tell you if you should limit any activity. |
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| Q: |
What About Follow-up Care? |
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Patients who have completed radiation therapy need to continue, at least for a short while, some of the special care used during treatment.
If you experienced skin irritation during treatment, this could persist for several weeks after treatment is completed. You should continue to be gentle with the skin in the treatment area until it has healed. We recommend using a good skin moisturizer for local skin irritation.
You may find that you still need extra rest while your healthy tissues are rebuilding. Keep taking naps as you need to, and try to get extra sleep at night. It may take some time after treatment to regain your strength, so don’t try to resume a full schedule of activities right away.
If you followed a special diet during your treatment for nausea or diarrhea, you may need to continue the diet for a time after the treatments have stopped.
If you need any special instructions, your radiation oncologist will tell you when your treatments are ending.
Long term follow-up care
Following your course of radiation treatment, you will have a schedule of follow-up visits to monitor your progress. During these clinic visits, your radiation oncologist will perform a physical examination and may order scans or other tests, if needed. If tests are scheduled, they will be explained to you. |
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| Q: |
What Should I Look for After My Treatment is Complete? |
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After treatment for cancer, you’re likely to be more aware of your body and notice slight changes in how you feel from day to day. Your doctor will want you to report any symptoms.
If you have any of the problems listed below, call us right away:
• A pain that persists, especially if it is always in the same place.
• Persistent lumps, bumps, or unusual swelling.
• Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or loss of appetite.
• Unexplained weight loss.
• Persistent fever or cough.
• Unusual rashes, bleeding, or bruising.
• Any other signs your doctor or nurse instructed... you to
..watch for. |
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