Radiation Based Treatment inc. Targeted Molecular Radiation Therapies At certain doses, radiation therapy can kill cancer cells or slow 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. However, radiation therapy does not kill cancer cells right away. It can take several treatments over several days, weeks or even months before DNA is damaged enough for cancer cells to die. Then, cancer cells may keep on dying for weeks or months after radiation therapy ends. Radiation therapy may be classed as external beam or internal treatment and the type of treatment you may be offered will depend on the type, site, size and position of the tumour(s) to be treated. Your medical team will also need to assess your current health, the risk / benefit of treatment – and what other treatments you may have already had or may need to have in the future. For example – if you have already had external beam radiotherapy to a specific site of the body, you may not be able to have further therapy to that same area, because of the risk of doing more harm than good.
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