What is radiation oncology?

Radiation oncology is a medical specialty that uses targeted radiation therapy to treat cancer. Radiation may be used alone or as part of a treatment plan that includes surgery, chemotherapy, immunotherapy or other cancer treatments.

How is radiation treatment planned?

Radiation treatment is planned using advanced imaging and computer-aided planning. The care team identifies the tumor and nearby healthy tissue so treatment can be delivered as precisely as possible.

What types of radiation therapy are available?

Torrance Memorial Hunt Cancer Institute offers several radiation therapy options, including 3-D conformal radiation therapy, IMRT, IGRT, VMAT, SRS, SBRT, HDR brachytherapy, partial breast radiation and SpaceOAR hydrogel for eligible prostate cancer patients.

Is radiation therapy painful?

Radiation therapy itself is usually painless during treatment. Side effects vary depending on the treatment area, dose and type of radiation therapy. The care team explains what to expect before treatment begins.

Radiation Oncology

The Radiation Oncology program at Torrance Memorial Hunt Cancer Institute, an affiliate of Cedars-Sinai Cancer, offers advanced cancer imaging, computer-aided treatment planning and targeted radiation therapy for many types of cancer.

Radiation therapy is carefully planned to deliver treatment to the tumor while limiting radiation exposure to nearby healthy tissue. This precision can help reduce side effects and support each patient’s overall cancer care plan.

Hunt Cancer Institute radiation oncologists use advanced technologies including TrueBeam^®, Brainlab technology and the Calypso^® extracranial tracking system to provide highly targeted radiation treatments.

Radiation Oncology Treatments and Therapies

Our radiation oncology team offers a range of treatment options. Your care team will recommend the most appropriate therapy based on your diagnosis, tumor location, treatment goals and overall health.

3-D Conformal Radiation Therapy

3-D conformal radiation therapy uses CT-based treatment planning and three-dimensional imaging of the tumor and surrounding structures. This allows the care team to deliver radiation more precisely while helping avoid nearby healthy tissue.

Electron Beam Radiation Therapy

Electron beam radiation therapy is often used to treat superficial tumors or target areas near the surface of the body, including some skin or breast cancers. This approach helps limit radiation exposure to deeper tissues and organs.

High Dose-Rate Brachytherapy

High dose-rate, or HDR, brachytherapy delivers radiation from inside or very close to the treatment area. A catheter or implant is placed into the target area, and a radiation source is temporarily passed through it to deliver treatment.

Brachytherapy may be used for certain breast, gynecologic and skin cancers. It can deliver a high dose of radiation to the target area while helping protect nearby organs from unnecessary exposure.

Partial Breast Radiation

Some patients with breast cancer who have had a lumpectomy may benefit from radiation focused only on the surgical cavity. At Torrance Memorial, partial breast radiation may be delivered using 3-D conformal radiation therapy or HDR brachytherapy.

Image-Guided Radiation Therapy

Image-guided radiation therapy, or IGRT, uses imaging from the TrueBeam linear accelerator to verify the tumor location and the patient’s anatomy before each treatment. This helps the care team position treatment accurately and efficiently.

Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy

Intensity modulated radiation therapy, or IMRT, delivers radiation to tumors with a high level of precision while helping reduce radiation exposure to surrounding healthy tissue.

IMRT is an advanced form of 3-D conformal radiation therapy and may be used to treat many types of cancer, including prostate cancer and cancers of the head, neck and abdomen. IMRT is often combined with IGRT or Calypso technology for additional accuracy.

Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy

Volumetric modulated arc therapy, or VMAT, is a form of IMRT that delivers a precisely shaped radiation dose as the linear accelerator rotates around the patient. This approach can help deliver treatment efficiently while targeting the tumor in three dimensions.

Stereotactic Radiosurgery

Stereotactic radiosurgery, or SRS, is a nonsurgical treatment that delivers powerful, highly focused doses of radiation to targets in the brain. Treatment may be completed in a single session or over a few sessions, depending on the patient’s care plan.

Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy

Stereotactic body radiation therapy, or SBRT, delivers powerful and precise doses of radiation to tumors in areas such as the spine, lungs, liver, pancreas, prostate, kidneys or bones. SBRT is often completed in one to five treatments.

Similar to SRS, the goal of SBRT is to treat the tumor while helping spare nearby healthy tissue.

CT, MRI and PET Image Fusion

CT, MRI and PET image fusion combines images from multiple scans into a single planning image. This gives physicians and therapists a more detailed view of the tumor and its relationship to surrounding tissue, helping support precise radiation treatment planning.

SpaceOAR^™ Hydrogel

SpaceOAR, which stands for Spacing Organs at Risk, is a temporary gel placed between the prostate and rectum before radiation treatment for prostate cancer. The gel helps create space between the prostate and rectum, reducing unnecessary radiation exposure to the rectum and helping lower the risk of side effects.