LTHT Colorectal Surgery: Radiotherapy

Colorectal Surgery Website

Radiotherapy

Radiotherapy is the use of radiation to treat cancer. In colorectal cancer it is used in two ways. The first is that it might be necessary to use radiotherapy to shrink the size of the tumor before the operation. This makes the tumor a smaller size and so is easier for the surgeon to remove.

The other reason for having radiotherapy is to try to kill any remaining cancer cells that cannot be removed by the surgery. This would be given post surgery.

For more information on Radiotherapy please look at the following websites

Leeds Cancer Services - Information on radiotherapy services at The Leeds Teaching Hospitals.

Best Treatments - A site from the British Medical Journal (BMJ) on radiotherapy for colorectal cancer.

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