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Oncology: |
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Usually
radiation treatments are given to
a small, specific area where your cancer
is located and to "regional"
lymph nodes.
There are however two specific times
when the radiation treatment area may
be large. One of them is known as total
body irradiation or "TBI".
The second type of large field irradiation
is known as hemi-body
irradiation.
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Total
Body Irradiation: In this treatment, the whole
body receives the entire dose. In some cases,
special blocks may be used, usually for the lungs.
It is usually given either once or twice a day
for between three and four days and is used most
commonly in combination with chemotherapy for
patients who receive bone marrow transplant therapy.
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PICTURE
(CLINICAL BLOCKS/NO BLOCKS)
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Hemi-body
irradiation: In this treatment one half of
the body, usually above or below the belly button
(also known as the umbilicus), will receive a
single treatment. This treatment may then be repeated
on the other untreated half of the body. It is
usually given to relieve pain from cancer that
has spread to multiple bony sites that can't all
be treated individually. When this technique is
used it is given to only one half at a time with
the second treatment being given two to four weeks
later, depending on when the blood counts are
high enough to be treated safely.
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To
find out what side effects a specific area
may have and the doses at which these complications
and side effects can occur. See our Radiation
Oncology Side Effects
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