Radiation therapy is treatment that uses high-energy rays to kill cancer cells or shrink tumors. External beam radiation aims radiation from outside the body to the cancer. Liver cancer cells can be killed by radiation, but this treatment can't be used at very high doses because normal liver tissue is killed, too. This type of radiation may be used to shrink a liver tumor or to give relief from symptoms like pain, but it is not used as often as other local treatments such as ablation or embolization.
Three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3DCRT) is a newer type of external-beam radiation treatment. It uses computers to map the exact location of a tumor. Radiation beams are then shaped and aimed at the tumor from different angles. This lowers the damage to normal tissue and allows higher doses to be used. When available, this approach is usually preferred over standard radiation treatment.
Instead of giving small doses of radiation each day for several weeks, stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) uses very focused beams of high-dose radiation given on one or more days. Many beams are aimed at the tumor from different angles.
Possible side effects of radiation treatment
Side effects of radiation treatment might include sunburn-like skin problems at the place where the radiation enters the body, nausea, vomiting, and tiredness. Often these go away after treatment is finished. Radiation might also make chemo side effects worse.
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