‫المملكة العربية السعودية‬

‫وزارة التعليم‬
‫جامعة الجوف‬
‫التخصص‪ :‬السنة المشتركة(مسار صحي)‬
‫المقرر‪:‬الفيزياء الطبية‬

‫‪Radiation therapy‬‬

‫الطالب ‪:‬‬
‫‪Mohammed Al-Habbad‬‬
‫‪Omar Al-Nashmy‬‬
‫‪Saad Hammoud‬‬
‫‪Sayyaf AL-Subai‬‬
‫‪Faleh Al-Ruwili‬‬

‫‪1‬‬
  Abstract :

Why does radiation therapy cause side effects

High doses of radiation therapy are used to destroy cancer cells.

Side effects come from damage to healthy cells and tissues near
the treatment area. Major advances in radiation therapy have
made it more precise. This reduces the side effects.

Some people experience few side effects from radiation therapy.

Or even none. Other people experience more severe side effects.

Reactions to the radiation therapy often start during the second

or third week of treatment. They may last for several weeks after
the final treatment.

2
  Introduction :

Radiation therapy is a type of cancer treatment that uses energy-

intensive packages to kill cancer cells. Radiation therapy often
uses X-rays, but protons or other types of energy can also be
used.

The term "radiotherapy" often refers to treatment with external

beams. During this type of radiation, high-energy beams are
released from a machine outside the body where the beams are
directed to a precise point in the patient's body. During a
different type of radiation therapy called cure therapy, radiation
is placed in the patient's body.

Radiation therapy eliminates cells by destroying the genetic

material that controls cell growth and division.

Since both healthy and cancerous cells are destroyed, the goal of
radiation therapy is to destroy the smallest possible number of
normal healthy cells. Natural cells can perform more repair than
.radiation damage

3
  How Radiation Therapy Works Against Cancer:
At high doses, radiation therapy kills cancer cells or slows their
growth by damaging their DNA. Cancer cells whose DNA is
damaged beyond repair stop dividing or die. When the damaged
cells die, they are broken down and removed by the body.

Radiation therapy does not kill cancer cells right away. It takes
days or weeks of treatment before DNA is damaged enough for
cancer cells to die. Then, cancer cells keep dying for weeks or
months after radiation therapy ends.

o Types of Radiation Therapy

There are two main types of radiation therapy, external beam
and internal.
The type of radiation therapy that you may have depends on
many factors, including:
1. The type of cancer
2. The size of the tumor
3. The tumor’s location in the body

4
 4. How close the tumor is to normal tissues that are sensitive
to radiation
5. Your general health and medical history
6. Whether you will have other types of cancer treatment
7. Other factors, such as your age and other medical
conditions

 Potential side effects

Radiation therapy is a local treatment. This means that it only
affects the area of the body where the tumor is located. For
example, people do not usually lose their hair from having
radiation therapy. But radiation therapy to the scalp may cause
hair loss.
Common side effects of radiation therapy include:
1. Skin problems. Some people who receive radiation
therapy experience dryness, itching, blistering, or peeling.
These side effects depend on which part of the body
received radiation therapy. Skin problems usually go away
a few weeks after treatment ends. If skin damage becomes
a serious problem, your doctor may change your treatment
plan.
2. Fatigue. Fatigue describes feeling tired or exhausted
almost all the time. Your level of fatigue often depends on
your treatment plan. For example, radiation therapy
combined with chemotherapy may result in more fatigue.
Learn more about how to cope with fatigue.
3. Long-term side effects. Most side effects go away after
treatment. But some continue, come back, or develop later.
These are called late effects. One example is the
development of a second cancer. This is a new type of
cancer that develops because of the original cancer
treatment. The risk of this late effect is low. And the risk is
5
 often smaller than the benefit of treating the primary,
existing cancer.

 What are the side effects of radiotherapy ?

Side effects vary from patient to patient. It depends on the
amount and degree of treatment. The most common side
effects are:
o Feeling of fatigue
o Skin problems
o Anorexia
o Nausea
o Vomiting
o Headache
o Mouth ulcers
o Hair loss
o Decrease in the number of blood cells.

The difference between radiotherapy and chemotherapy

The most common types of cancer treatment are radiation and
chemotherapy. Each treatment is designed to target and kill
cancer cells in the body, but both use a different set of processes
and tools to help treat and cure the patient.

6
  References:
/https://www.cancer.net
/https://www.cancer.gov
National Institutes of Health(2000),Radiation Therapy and
.You: A Guide to Self-Help During Treatment