What is Radiation Therapy for Prostate Cancer?
There are two types of radiation treatment available to prostate cancer patients: external and brachytherapy. External therapy has been in medically-effective practice for longer than brachytherapy. This treatment is often referred to as radiotherapy. EBRT has been so commonly used that EBRT and radiation therapy are sometimes used interchangeably. The goal of treatment is to irradiate a targeted area with as much energy as possible while avoiding the neighboring organs. Intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and 3 dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3D-CRT) are newer versions of EBRT that better achieve this goal. Proton beam therapy is becoming a more widely accepted treatment for prostate cancer, while neutron beam therapy is still in the experimental stages. Why does Radiation Therapy Work on Prostate Cancer? Radiation is used as a prostate cancer treatment because high energy waves damage the DNA of cells. If a cell divides prior to repairing the damage, the cell will d
