Radiation

If chemotherapy destroys all breast cancer cells in the lymph nodes, people may not need lymph node radiation after surgery, according to a new study.  

Research at San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS) suggests that some patients with breast cancer can safely skip radiation therapy.  

Traditional 2D mammograms take one image from the top and one from the side of your breast, but a 3D mammogram takes multiple images in an arc pattern. It combines them to form a three-dimensional image. This type of screening can help reduce the chance you’ll need a follow-up and may detect more cancers. It’s […]

A new study suggests that for certain women over 65, radiation after breast cancer surgery doesn’t improve overall survival odds.  

Radiation is part of treatment for breast cancer that comes with certain risks. In some people, it can increase their risk of heart problems.  

Treating early-stage breast cancer with radiation along with chemotherapy and hormonal therapy after lumpectomy lowers recurrence risk in the same breast, but doesn’t improve overall survival.  

If your doctor recommends radiation, there is a chance you will experience both short-term and long-term side effects, as with any treatment. Source: 6 Long-Term Radiation Side Effects You Should Know – The Breast Cancer Site News

Proton therapy is a type of radiation therapy that uses proton beams to kill cancer cells. Source: Proton therapy for breast cancer: What it is, uses, and procedure

Exposure to radiation can increase the risk of developing cancer. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) notes that radiation exposure is a potential risk associated with mammograms. The risk is greatest when a person experiences exposure to repeated chest X-rays. Source: Do mammograms cause cancer?

While the gap has narrowed, over the last 10 years, women of color and women with less education and lower incomes have had less access to 3D screening mammograms compared to white women and women who are more educated and financially well-off, according to a study. Source: 3D Mammogram Disparities: Black and Low-Income Women Often […]

Combining radiation therapy with other therapies has led to improved outcomes for patients with breast cancer. Source: Corey Speers, MD, PhD, on Emerging Radiosensitization Strategies for Breast Cancer | MedPage Today

Now, however, the results of a long-term study comparing whole-breast radiation and accelerated partial-breast radiation (APBI) have revealed that the latter option is not only faster and less invasive, but it may be just as effective as whole-breast radiation. Source: Study Finds Accelerated Partial-Breast Radiation Just as Effective as Whole Breast Radiation | The Breast […]

Radiation treatment for breast cancer can cause skin changes that appear as burns. Learn more about what they look like and how to manage them here. Source: Breast cancer radiation burns: Pictures, treatment, and management

Unlike traditional radiation therapy, proton therapy does not use X-rays. Experts think that proton therapy may be safer than other radiation therapies because it targets a specific area and has less of an impact on the healthy tissue around cancer cells. Source: Proton therapy for breast cancer: What it is, uses, and procedure

Instead of undergoing six to seven weeks of regular radiation treatments after the removal of a lump, some women might benefit from a five-day radiation treatment that reaches the innermost breast cancer tissue where cancer cells reside. Source: Less-Invasive Targeted Radiation Treatments Destroy Cancer Cells in Five Days Instead of Five Weeks | The Breast […]

Now, researchers are developing a new class of drugs called radiopharmaceuticals, which deliver radiation therapy directly and specifically to cancer cells. The last several years have seen an explosion of research and clinical trials testing new radiopharmaceuticals. Source: Radiopharmaceuticals Emerging as New Cancer Therapy – National Cancer Institute

If you’ve been diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer and radiation therapy is part of your treatment plan, you may want to talk to your doctor about this study and ask whether this 1-week hypofractionated radiation schedule of 26 Gy makes sense for you and your unique situation. Source: Accelerated Radiation Therapy for 1 Week Offers […]

For people with early breast cancer, delivering radiation therapy in fewer, larger doses does not increase the risk of long-term side effects from treatment, a new study demonstrates. Source: Radiation Therapy for Early Breast Cancer Safe in Fewer, Higher Doses

The shorter duration would also lead to fewer side effects and less recovery time than traditional radiation. Source: Cancer Patients May Soon Be Able to Get an Entire Course of Radiation in Less Than 1 Second | The Breast Cancer Site Blog

A hypofractionated, or accelerated, schedule of radiation therapy that includes five treatments over 1 week seems to offer the same benefits as a schedule of 15 treatments over 3 weeks for early-stage breast cancer, according to a study. Source: Accelerated Radiation Therapy for 1 Week Offers Same Benefits as 3-Week Schedule for Early-Stage Breast Cancer

 A new observational study compared the safety and effectiveness of proton therapy and traditional radiation in adults with advanced cancer. Source: Is Proton Therapy Safer than Traditional Radiation? – National Cancer Institute

New research in mice shows “for the first time” that scientists can use protons to administer radiation therapy in a matter of milliseconds, killing cancer cells while protecting healthy tissue. Source: How proton radiotherapy can kill cancer in milliseconds

Digital breast tomosynthesis, also known as three-dimensional mammography, has been under investigation as a replacement for or complement to two-dimensional (2D) digital mammography in breast cancer screening for some years, with several prospective, population-based trials reporting increased cancer detection. Source: Tomosynthesis in breast screening: great expectations? – The Lancet Oncology

A first-of-its-kind study compares the cure rates and side effects of proton therapy and X-ray radiation for people with various forms of cancer. Source: Cancer: Proton therapy has fewer side effects than X-ray radiation

New results from two clinical trials suggest that either of two types of radiation therapy after breast-conserving surgery for women with early-stage breast cancer can reduce the risk of the cancer returning. Source: Two Radiation Therapy Approaches Prevent Breast Cancer Recurrences – National Cancer Institute

Unlike traditional radiation therapy, proton therapy does not use X-rays. Experts think that proton therapy may be safer than other radiation therapies because it targets a specific area and has less of an impact on the healthy tissue around cancer cells. Source: Proton therapy for breast cancer: What it is, uses, and procedure

In women with early-stage breast cancer, whole- and partial-breast radiation therapy effectively prevent cancer from returning after breast-conserving surgery. Source: Two Radiation Therapy Approaches Prevent Breast Cancer Recurrences – National Cancer Institute

The use of 1-view digital breast tomosynthesis with a reduced compression force during breast cancer screenings resulted in a higher sensitivity and lower specificity to lesion detection compared with 2-view digital mammography, which may reduce radiation dose and screening burdens, according to a study published in Lancet Oncology.

Radiation can be an effective treatment for breast cancer, but it does have side effects. Doctors may recommend this therapy in combination with others, such as surgery and chemotherapy. Learn more about how radiation for breast cancer affects the body and what short- and long-term side effects to expect. Source: Side effects of radiation for […]

Radiation therapy for breast cancer — Overview covers why it’s done, what to expect and side effects of breast cancer radiation, including proton therapy. Source: Radiation therapy for breast cancer – Mayo Clinic

By delivering larger individual doses of radiation across fewer treatment sessions, accelerated partial breast irradiation (APBI) has emerged as an alternative approach to whole breast irradiation (WBI). Studies have shown that by treating the area of the breast in the vicinity of the original tumor, APBI can reduce recurrences. Source: Two Radiation Therapy Approaches Prevent […]

UVA Drs. Timothy and Shayna Showalter are pioneering and testing a “more targeted, more powerful, more personalized and potentially more effective” approach to treating patients with early-stage breast cancer. Source: Husband-and-Wife Doctors Receive $1.8 Million to Test New Breast Cancer Approach | UVA Today

Over the past decade, breast cancer has been a focus of research on cardiac side effects, in part because certain treatments for the disease are known to cause these side effects.Based on this evidence, the American Heart Association recently issued a rare scientific statement on cardiovascular disease and breast cancer. For some breast cancer survivors—older […]

Oxygen-carrying “microbubbles” could potentially improve the effectiveness of radiation therapy in the treatment of breast cancer, findings from a study in mice suggest. Using the bubbles along with radiation slowed tumor growth more than radiation alone, as this NCI Cancer Currents post reports.

Treatments for breast cancer include chemotherapy, hormone therapy, targeted therapy, surgery, and radiation. As there is not one perfect formula to eliminate the disease, many patients will need to undergo a combination of these treatment methods. In some of these cases, however, certain treatments pose higher risks. For women with left-sided breast cancer, it is important to consider what type of radiation is best. Since the tumor is close to the heart, certain treatments can cause significant damage to this vital organ, while other treatments may spare damage to this vital organ. In these cases, proton therapy is often a better option.