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Radiation

Radiation therapy is the use of X-rays and gamma rays to destroy DNA molecules in cancer cells. Since cancer cells have such a poor ability to repair their DNA, this radiation often prevents them from reproducing, which causes the body to dispose of them. However, radiation also affects healthy cells, which causes the patient to experience side effects.

The radiation has the ability to alter molecules. The beams of X-rays and gamma rays do this by depositing energy on the molecules and removing electrons, causing the molecules to become highly reactive. This causes larger molecules, like DNA, to be damaged. This triggers an emergency response in the cell. However, since cancer cells cannot repair themselves very well, with continual radiation treatment, their emergency responses become ineffective.

There are two methods to administer radiation therapy. The first is external beam therapy. This is done using a linear accelerator to generate the beam of radiation, which is aimed at the cancer cells. The other method is brachytherapy, where a radioactive isotope is placed on or inside the body, close to the tumor. In both these methods, the radiation is given in intervals, so that the normal cells are given time to repair in between radiation treatments. Without having these breaks, the normal cells would not be able to repair themselves and they too would be destroyed.

Radiation therapy is usually used to treat cancers with solid, localized tumors. These cancers include cancers of the skin, tongue, larynx, brain, breast, and uterine cervix. It is also sometimes used to treat cancers of the blood, like leukemia and lymphoma. As a treatment, radiation therapy can be used alone or in conjunction with chemotherapy and surgery.

Because radiation also causes damage in healthy cells, there are side effects that patients experience while undergoing radiation therapy. These side effects will vary from person to person, as no one is exactly the same. Common side effects include fatigue, hair loss in the area getting the radiation treatment, diarrhea, nausea, skin reactions and armpit discomfort.