Radiation therapy may be a treatment option if you
have a seminoma type of testicular cancer. Because
the lymph nodes in the pelvis and lower back are the
most common areas for metastasis of testicular
cancer, radiation is often performed on this area.
Your particular radiation treatment schedule will
depend on a number of factors, including the type of
cancer cells present, the stage of your cancer, the
dosing, type and method of radiation administration.
For example there are several radioactive substances
available including Cesium (137Cs), Cobalt (60Co),
Iodine (131I), Phosphorus (32P), Gold (198Au),
Iridium (192Ir), Yttrium (90Y), Palladium (103).
Each has a different half life or length of activity
in the body.
Treatment Administration affects scheduling:
With external beam radiation therapy, treatments are
usually scheduled five days a week, every day except
Saturday and Sunday, and continue for three to 10
weeks. Some patients receive hyperfractionated
radiation therapy (treatments are given more than one
time per a day). The goal of such frequent
scheduling is to prevent cancer cells from
recooperating and multiplying between sessions.
Brachytherapy, also sometimes referred to as internal
radiation, HDR (high dose rate) or seed implants
(such as for prostate), is the placement of
radioactive sources in or just next to a tumor.
TomoTherapy® HI-ART allows for delivery of precise
doses of radiation therapy from 360-degrees.
As for the length of treatment, a study of over
1,200 early stage breast cancer patients who had a
lumpectomy showed that a shorter radiation therapy
schedule of 3 weeks is as effective as the standard 5-
week schedule. Oncology Times, Vol 22, No 6, pp 43-
44, 2000. You will want to discuss with your
oncologist if a shorter treatment path is an option
for you.
For help with treatment side effects, please see my
article on treating radiation cystitis
http://www.seekwellness.com/cancercontrol/radiation_cy
stitis.htm
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