Radiation therapy

Radiation is a highly targeted treatment that is aimed at a specific area of your body or tumor site. By damaging cancerous cells, radiation makes cancers unable to reproduce. Because of the sensitive nature of cancer cells, low doses of radiation can be effective. The surrounding, healthy tissue in your body is stronger, and as a result, radiation doses have a less significant effect on healthy cells.

As advancements in cancer treatment continue to develop, radiation oncologists can now deliver higher doses of radiation with enhanced targeting methods. This minimizes radiation exposure to normal organs even further. Typically, radiation therapy is delivered in small doses over the course of several weeks.

By breaking up radiation treatment over time, the normal cells in your body have more time to rest and repair. Ideally, radiation is delivered directly to a tumor site so normal tissues and organs can be spared as much as possible.

3D conformal radiation therapy

Every person undergoing radiation therapy at our hospital will first receive a computerized axial tomography (CAT) scan, which is used to create a 3D image that facilitates the planning of your radiation treatment. Using this 3D technology, our radiation oncologists can deliver radiation beams that mimic the shape of the tumor being targeted.

Intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT)

One of the latest technologies in conformal radiation is IMRT. Taking a step toward even greater precision, IMRT allows for adjusted shaping and modifications in radiation beams as they enter your body. This results in higher radiation doses being delivered to tumors while continuing to spare surrounding tissues and organs.

Stereotactic radiosurgery

We are proud to be a leader in the Inland Empire for stereotactic radiosurgery. By investing in our state-of-the-art stereotactic radiosurgery system, we provide faster, more precise radiation treatment. This technology opens up more options if you have tumors in hard-to-reach areas that were previously deemed inoperable. Stereotactic radiosurgery is a noninvasive treatment and can be used to treat cancerous tumors anywhere in your body.

No radioactive substances are used in the radiation delivery machine or stereotactic radiosurgical system. Radiation is produced in the form of high-energy X-rays aimed directly at cancer cells with extreme accuracy. Our stereotactic radiosurgery technology uses image guidance to deliver radiation beams from any direction and tracks the tumor's position constantly during treatment. Constant tracking means radiation doses are automatically corrected with any movement from you.

Stereotactic radiosurgery involves four stages:

• Planning — After imaging, the scans will be transferred to our treatment planning system, which uses software that generates a treatment plan. The plan will determine the desired radiation dose to a tumor, while minimizing any damage to surrounding healthy tissues. You do not need to be present for this process as our clinical team will develop this plan of care.
• Scanning — Prior to treatment, you will undergo a variety of imaging procedures, such as computerized tomography (CT) scans, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) scans. Imaging is focused on the tumor and is used to determine its size, shape and location.
• Treatment — On the day of the stereotactic radiosurgery procedure, you lie on a comfortable treatment table that will automatically adjust your position. Treatment normally lasts 15 to 30 minutes, with an entire course of treatment spread out between one to five visits. Anesthesia is not needed.
• Follow-up — After the procedure, additional imaging is performed to evaluate the tumor's response to the dose of radiation that was received.

Benefits of stereotactic procedures

Stereotactic radiosurgery requires no surgery, no anesthesia and no overnight stay in the hospital for postoperative healing.

Additionally, there are other reasons you may prefer stereotactic radiosurgery to other forms of radiation oncology. These factors include:

• Accuracy — Radiation beams delivered via stereotactic radiosurgery treat cancerous tumors with pinpoint precision. This is made possible by the radiosurgery system's ability to automatically synchronize imaging, beam shaping and dose delivery. Additionally, internal accuracy checks are performed every ten milliseconds during the entire treatment.
• Enhanced imaging — By using 3D imaging technology, images can be fine-tuned to enhance tumor targeting before and during treatment.
• Motion compensation — For tumors that may be subject to respiratory motion, this treatment provides respiratory gating, which monitors and compensates for the tumor's movement during treatment. Without the use of rigid steel headframes, radiation beams are only activated when the tumor is in the optimal position for treatment.
• Speed — Treatment times are fast without sacrificing precision. This may allow you to have a more comfortable treatment experience and return to daily life as soon as possible.
  

As part of Sarah Cannon, the Cancer Institute of HCA Healthcare, our family of hospitals provides comprehensive cancer services with convenient access to cutting-edge therapies for people facing cancer in our communities. From diagnosis to treatment and survivorship care, our oncology expertise ensures you have access to locally trusted care with the support of a globally recognized network.

askSARAH helpline

Have cancer questions? We can help. askSARAH is a dedicated helpline for your cancer-related questions. Our specially trained nurses are available 24/7, and all calls are confidential. Contact askSARAH at (844) 482-4812 or learn more about askSARAH online.