Radiation Therapy

Radiation therapy, or radiotherapy, uses high-energy x-rays to damage or kill cancer cells in order to prevent the cells from growing and dividing.

Radiation therapy is a local treatment recommended in conjunction with a lumpectomy to kill any cancer cells that remain in the breast; however, it does not kill cancer cells that might have spread to other parts of the body.

Radiation therapy may be externally or internally delivered, both on an outpatient basis. External radiation focuses high-energy rays to the entire breast from a machine called a linear accelerator. The treatment takes a few minutes each day, five days a week for five to seven weeks.

Internal radiation can be delivered by multiple catheters (thin tubes) or a single catheter. Using multiple catheters to treat the area where the tumor was removed is called brachytherapy. These catheters are loaded with radioactive pellets. Internal radiation can also be given through a single catheter that is attached to a balloon placed inside the lumpectomy cavity. Both treatments take five days (a few minutes twice a day) to complete. Because the treatments are internal, larger doses of radiation can be given over a shorter time period and are equivalent to the amount given for the longer duration.

Side Effects

Short-term side effects of radiation treatment include fatigue, skin irritation or changes, breast soreness and swelling from fluid buildup.

Tattoos

In order to treat the area accurately on a daily basis, radiation technicians often use marks on the body surface. Pen or marker pens can rub off, requiring guesswork as to where the marks were. A covering can be placed over the marks to protect them, but some patients cannot tolerate the adhesive.

Tattoos are reliable because you can’t lose them. There are very few, the size of a pencil point, and not visible through clothing.
An advantage of tattoos is the permanent record they provide. For women who develop contralateral (opposite breast) breast cancer, the radiation oncologist can “read” the previous radiation field and prevent overlap with the new field. When patient records are unavailable, tattoos can chronicle previous treatments.

Would you like to talk with someone who has had radiation? Call the Y-ME Hotline at 800-221-2141 and speak with a trained peer counselor who is a breast cancer survivor.

Tattoo information adapted from the Summer 2002 issue of Lifeline.

November 2007