Medindia » Consumer Health » Health Information » Radiotherapy - Dosage

Radiotherapy

Dosage:

RSS Feeds   Text 
The dose depends on the tumour type, whether radiation is given alone or with chemotherapy, before or after surgery, the success of surgery etc. radiation oncologist treating the patient determines the radiation dose.

The amount of radiation absorbed by the tissues is called the radiation dosage. Before 1985, dose was measured in a unit called a "rad" (radiation absorbed dose). Now Gray (Gy) is a unit of radiation dose. One Gy is equal to 100 rads; one centigray (cGy) is the same as 1 rad.

In case ofcurative treatment of a solid epithelial tumor radiation dose raging from 50-70 Gy is administered.in case of lymphomas 20-40 Gy is given. This dose is given in daily fraction called the fraction schedule. Typically adults receive 1.8-2 Gy per fraction. The typical treatment schedule is 5 days per week (no weekends). These small frequent doses allow healthy cells time to grow back, repairing damage inflicted by the radiation. Daily fractions of radiation are given using an external source or an internal source such as implants.

In case of palliative treatment a single dose of 6-10Gy may be given to painful superficial tumours, to releive pain.


Share it!
Comment & Contribute
Comments should be on the topic and should not be abusive. Comments are normally moderated and are reviewed after they are posted.
* Your comment can be maximum of 2500 characters

Notify me when reply is posted
I agree to the terms and conditions
  
If you have a question about health related issues, you can now post it in our Ask An Expert section on our community website Medwonders.com and get answers from our panel of experts.
Posted by:  faranak(Guest)  Posted on: 02/11/2012
could IMRT done near an organ cause the organ a condition that can not be transplanted if needed?



Posted by:  linac  Posted on: 07/17/2010
hi!
can i ask what's the difference between conventional fractionated XRT versus stereotactic radiosurgery vs external beam radiation therapy?



Posted by:  ahpeng  Posted on: 04/16/2010
My skin is itchy and scratches now and then please advise




X
Related Links
Rhabdomyosarcoma
X-Ray
Gastric Cancer
Carcinoma of the Breast
Carcinoma of Lung
Cancer in Women
Citing this Health Article
The information on Medindia is factual, unbiased and authentic. If you find the content useful - PLEASE INCLUDE A LINK TO THIS PAGE.

Highlight the text, right-click, and select “copy”. Paste the link into your website, email, or any other HTML document.

News on Radiotherapy
* Qui Vive: Intense Nuclear Radiation Threat, Scientists
* Biomarkers to Confirm Radiation Exposure
* No Conclusive Study to Link Cellular Tower Radiation With Cancer
* Northwest China To Set Up Radiation Monitoring Stations
* Respiration in Radiotherapy – Striking The Treatment Target Minus Collateral Damage
Total News Item 372
Are you a member of Facebook? Become a fan of Medindia and get breaking news delivered to your Facebook page.