Ronald Chen, Chair of Radiation Oncology at the University of Kansas Medical Center, shared on LinkedIn:
“Radiation oncology, of course, implies that we’re treating cancer. But with more and more work using radiation to treat non-cancer conditions, another term is being used: ‘radiation medicine’.
Because what we’re doing with radiation expands much further than cancer.
Radiation treatment is already being used to treat several non-cancer conditions like arthritis, trigeminal neuralgia, keloid scars and heterotopic ossification. It is also beginning to be used for cardiac arrhythmia.
Research also shows promise that radiation may help patients with seizures, obsessive compulsive disorder and depression.
This is only possible because radiation technology has become so precise over time, allowing us to treat millimeter-sized spots in the body that could not be accurately treated before.
I’m already looking ahead at how this field is changing. With radiation, I’m hopeful there will be a lot of positive impact for cancer and non-cancer patients in the future.
Radiation therapy truly is a very targeted treatment.”
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