Principles of radiation oncology

Abstract

The medical specialty of radiation oncology has evolved significantly over the past 50 years, having begun as a subspecialty within diagnostic radiology in the 1930s and 1940s. Today, more than 50% of newly diagnosed cancer patients receive radiation therapy, typically as a part of curative combined modality treatment with surgery and/or chemotherapy. Additionally, a majority of patients who present with metastatic disease or who develop metastases following initial cancer treatment require palliative radiation therapy. As such, the radiation oncologist plays a major role in the management of most adult cancers and certain groups of pediatric and adolescent cancers. The intent of this chapter is to provide an overview of radiation biology, newer approaches to radiation treatment planning, the use of specialized applications of radiation therapy, and the mechanisms of drug-radiation interactions leading to radiosensitization, as well as the evolving area of targeted radiation therapy. It is hoped that this overview provides the necessary fundamental knowledge of radiation oncology for the reader (particularly nonradiation oncologists) to then better understand the rationale for the use of radiation therapy in specific cancers as detailed in other chapters throughout this textbook. © 2006 Springer Science+Business Media, Inc.