Depending on the type of sarcoma, its location, and its size, radiation therapy may be necessary.
For soft-tissue sarcoma, radiation therapy is usually done prior to surgical resection. Radiation therapy may also be used to kill remaining cancer cells after surgery.
Specific examples of radiation treatment plans offered at Duke include Highly Focused Radiation Therapy Treatment Planning and intraoperative radiotherapy.
Radiation therapy treatments at Duke are led by Nicole Larrier, MD, and David Kirsch, MD.
Highly Focused Radiation Therapy Treatment Planning
Especially effective for extremity sarcomas, state-of-the art conformal/precision radiation therapy (also known as Highly Focused Radiation Therapy Treatment Planning) uses modern tumor imaging and advanced software tools to focus the radiation beam at the site of the tumor, thereby minimizing incidental irradiation of normal tissue.
This approach generally makes external beam radiation therapy both more effective and less toxic. As a result, patients are often spared unpleasant side effects such as nausea or hair loss.
Intraoperative Radiotherapy
Duke is one of a handful of cancer centers nationwide offering this innovative treatment to treat certain sarcomas.
In the procedure, a computer-controlled robot delivers a rice grain-sized bit of radioactive material to the site of a tumor during surgery, helping reduce damage to normal tissue and organs. The treatment may be performed at the time of the tumor-removing operation.
Physicians
Physicians offering this service include:
Locations
This service is available at:
