| Each year cancer research programs
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| | What to Expect When Entering Radiation
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| continue to grow: funding increases, new
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| | Therapy
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| technologies make year-old discoveries
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| | Although there are many different types
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| obsolete, and more doctors and scientists
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| | of radiation treatments, radiosurgery
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| contribute their ideas and methods to
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| | focusing specifically on the treatment of
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| understanding and eradicating cancer. As
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| | head, neck, and brain cancers, the side
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| these strides are made, more treatment
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| | effects of general radiotherapy and
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| options become available and fewer people
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| | radiosurgery will be very similar.
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| are forced to endure painful and invasive
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| | With radiosurgery, because the radiation
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| treatments.
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| | is focused around the head and brain
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| Radiosurgery is a non-invasive,
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| | area, the patient can often expect to
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| non-surgical treatment of brain cancer
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| | lose hair as a result of the treatment.
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| that allows doctors to direct beams of
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| | Other side effects may include a
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| radiation to precise locations in order
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| | reddening if the skin around the treated
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| to focus it directly over a brain tumor.
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| | area where the radiation beams are passed
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| This method can help treat and remove
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| | through, physical fatigue (patients may
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| intracranial tumors that would otherwise
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| | feel tired more often than normal and
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| not be accessible for open surgery.
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| | sleep longer hours), nausea, and
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| Choosing radiosurgery as an option over
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| | decreased immune response requiring that
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| more invasive routines is the method of
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| | patients avoid being in public as much as
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| choice for some patients, but is more
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| | possible to minimize the possibility of
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| likely to be a necessity for patients
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| | catching a virus or other sickness.
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| with certain types of tumors that are not
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| | When used to treat cancer, radiation
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| easily accessed through open surgery --
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| | therapy is often administered in
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| such as skull base tumors.
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| | conjunction with surgery and
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| Radiosurgery often uses the Leksell Gamma
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| | chemotherapy. In operable cases, surgery
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| Knife which concentrates gamma radiation
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| | may be conducted to remove as much of the
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| to the targeted portion of the patient's
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| | cancer as possible, then treatment is
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| brain. The radiation is so concentrated
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| | followed up by radiation therapy to kill
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| that, while some residual radiation
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| | any remaining cancer cells. The same is
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| exists, the vast majority of it is
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| | true of treatment in conjunction with
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| focused onto a much smaller area, thus
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| | chemotherapy.
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| degenerating the affected area and
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| | In some cases, a combination of all three
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| leaving the rest of the brain unaffected.
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| | treatments will be used. In cases where
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| The Leksell Gamma Knife form of
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| | the threat is not as immediate, radiation
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| radiotherapy has been known to work with
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| | therapy alone may be the only treatment
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| only one treatment.
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| | necessary.
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