Is it ok to re-radiate after a radiation treatment is over?

wifessupport

Hi ,

Is it ok to re-radiate the breast area after completion of radiation treatment a year ago? This is to treat local recurrence.

Thanks

Kicks

I was told that once an area has been irradiated - it can't be done again.  'Things' do change over the years as to what is considered doable/not doable, so need to talk with the Rads Dr.

bride

Kicks, 

You are so right in every part of you post. In general, it isn't feasible to re-radiate. But with the new developments in positron-guided radiation (sort of a cross between the nuclear medicine of a PET scan and radiation which amounts to a very targeted radiation), is sometimes doable. It carries lots of warnings to be sure there is no recurrence on the chest wall -- even to the point where many MED oncologists want to do some chemo, even the RAD dr says re-radiation will handle it.

Sometimes, it is like being in Alice in Wonderland: it takes all the running you can do just to stay in one place. 

bride

wifessupport

Met with radiation oncologist yesterday, they examined the area and determined that the recurrence was in an area outside the radiation field, so they are going to convene with the surgeons and decide whether to do radiation on the area other than the previously radiated field or do just spot radiation where the tumors were present etc.  Still up in the air.

Thanks all for the input, helped me a lot in asking a lot of questions to the oncologist yesterday.