Cancer can be treated with radiation therapy alone or in combination with chemotherapy or surgery. Chemotherapy (say: kee-mo-ther-uh-pee) is a treatment that uses medicine to destroy cancer cells. Some people may first have surgery to remove cancer cells or tumors and then have radiation therapy. Each person's treatment depends on the kind of cancer they have.
A doctor called an oncologist (say: on-kah-loh-jist) will make the decision about whether radiation therapy is best for the patient. Sometimes people stay in the hospital to get radiation therapy, but in most cases, the patient comes to the hospital or doctor's office for treatment and goes home afterward.
Radiation therapy can be given in two ways. A person may receive radiation directed to the outside of the body called external radiation. Or a person may receive radiation therapy that places the radiation inside the body, which is called internal radiation therapy (putting radioactive material directly in the tumor). Some people may receive both types of radiation therapy, but internal radiation is rarely used to treat the kinds of cancer kids get.
A doctor called an oncologist (say: on-kah-loh-jist) will make the decision about whether radiation therapy is best for the patient. Sometimes people stay in the hospital to get radiation therapy, but in most cases, the patient comes to the hospital or doctor's office for treatment and goes home afterward.
Radiation therapy can be given in two ways. A person may receive radiation directed to the outside of the body called external radiation. Or a person may receive radiation therapy that places the radiation inside the body, which is called internal radiation therapy (putting radioactive material directly in the tumor). Some people may receive both types of radiation therapy, but internal radiation is rarely used to treat the kinds of cancer kids get.
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