What radiotherapy on quality of life impact

By | March 27, 2012

Radiation treatment planning for the period is a very complex process that requires several days of room.The impact of radiotherapy on quality of life, once diagnosed with cancer, patients need to undergo a medical examination and a series of special examinations (including CT, MRI, etc.), to precisely determine the location and size of the tumor, radiation treatment of cancer doctors will determine the general volume (GTV), clinical tumor treatment volume (CTV), the GTV plus the surrounding area may contain small cells; also planning treatment volume (PTV), the CTV may be moving with physical organs may occur when the scope and treatment error.
Preparation process will be to use some advanced imaging technologies, such as X films, ultrasound, computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography CMRD scan (PET). These techniques can generate three-dimensional image of the tumor area. Moreover, positron emission scanning technique can distinguish between normal tissue and active cancer cells. These images formed the basis for radiation treatment planning. The treatment plan will be the detection of simulated treatment machine. X-ray simulator can find the location of the tumor to help determine the best radiation treatment area aligned way. These X-ray the human body is no obvious damage.
The impact of radiotherapy on quality of life, then, the doctor will be based on tumor type, size, location and the surrounding organs, decides to use what method and radiation dose. In order to improve the accuracy of the treatment, doctors often need to use the appropriate fixation. Fixed-mode devices need a special head holder and the other fourteen instruments to make the patient throughout the treatment period to maintain a fixed position. In the simulator, the doctor who in the loyalty of regional skin in need of treatment to do temporary or permanent signs dot the dots can not be washed with soap, and patients with these markers and fixed allows accurate every time treatment.
Fractionated radiation therapy treatment usually a week, 5 days a few weeks as a course. Radiation therapy process itself is not painful, just as film X films. During treatment, the doctor will check every night of tumor radiation response. Tumor shrinkage, the doctor in a timely manner to narrow the range of treatment to kill remaining cancer cells and do Oh, can protect normal tissues.
Radiation therapy is rare that the risk of surgery, such as bleeding, postoperative pain, heart disease, or thrombosis. Radiation therapy itself is not any pain. However, radiation therapy, radiation treatment will affect the normal tissue region, so it will have side effects. Radiation therapy is the most common side effects include skin burn treatment area there, tired and so on. Causes of fatigue caused by radiation therapy is not clear before, it may be leukocyte reduced, the body's immune system to produce the effect or influence by other symptoms, such as anemia and malnutrition. Radiation therapy side effects include skin reactions, hair loss, dry mouth, memory loss, loss of libido. If the head and neck radiotherapy, the patient may appear cold symptoms.
Lung cancer radiation therapy of patients breathing difficulties, coughing, eating pain. Gastrointestinal cancer treatment may be because of esophageal swelling and inflammation of the intestinal tract, cause nausea, vomiting or diarrhea. Radiation therapy usually damaged in the normal cells repair after treatment automatically, so side effects will occur during the treatment, will disappear shortly after the end of radiotherapy, based on acute radiation reactions. However, some long-term radiation damage, is affected by different normal cells caused by radiation injury, which is called post-radiation damage, can not be repaired should particularly avoid causing injection. Another side effect of radiotherapy induced second cancer.
The impact of radiotherapy on quality of life, the researchers on the Japanese atomic bomb survivors Qi-ray radiation in the long-term workers, and found that the relationship between cancer and rays. Radiation-related leukemia and radiation, radiation is the high incidence of 5-9 years longer and likely will gradually decrease. Radiation caused by other types of cancer out of time to see the slightly longer, usually 10-15 years. Other late radiation reaction, including poverty, child development, mental retardation, a number of organ function decline, such as the brain, liver, head and muscle. To a second cancer and other late side effects is very small chance, must be carefully weighed against. Recent progress made in the field of radiation therapy to decrease the severity of late side effects and incidence.

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