Why is IMRT considered for treatment in some cases?
IMRT is a more precise form of radiation therapy available. It allows physicians to escalate the radiation dose to cancer cells, and in some cases, even more precisely to specific metabolically active regions within a tumor, while keeping the dose to surrounding tissues as low as possible. An analogy might be painting with a paintbrush as compared to using an airbrush and masking tape to protect outlying areas. The airbrush allows you to deposit variable amounts of paint in a highly controlled fashion. IMRT does something similar with radiation.
