Radiotherapy for Breast Cancer

Radiation technology has existed in Indonesia since 1927, and until 2013 there were 29 radiotherapy service centers in Indonesia. Radiotherapy has become one of the important therapies in Indonesian cancer therapy. Breast cancer is the most cancer in women, which is about 25% of all cancer and is the second leading cause of death after lung cancer. Breast cancer can also occur in men, with a ratio of 1: 100 when compared to women.

Based on the time of use, radiotherapy consists of adjuvant radiotherapy given after certain methods of treatment, neoadjuvant radiotherapy, and radiochemotherapy. The neoadjuvant radiotherapy is carried out before other methods done, such as preoperative radiotherapy, while radiochemotherapy is the administration of radiotherapy that is done in conjunction with chemotherapy. The aim of radiation therapy is to maximize the radiation dose to abnormal cancer cells and minimize exposure to normal cells that are close to cancer cells or that are in the radiation area, despite the fact that radiation can damage both cancer cells and normal cells.

Radiation in breast cancer is both for curative (treatment to eliminate cancer and prevent recurrence) and palliative purpose (treatment to reduce complaints felt by patients due to cancer, such as pain, bleeding, unpleasant odor, ulceration, shortness of breath or swelling). Determination of the purpose of this radiation determines the dose and amount of radiation in patients. For example, stage IIA breast cancer patients who have been through surgical treatment, they received radiation therapy as curative adjuvant treatment. The side effects that can be caused from this therapy include: hyperpigmentation of the skin, inflammation of the skin, the skin becomes dry and slightly dark. These side effects are temporary, and will disappear in one to two weeks after the completion of radiation and swelling in the arms that occur at 5% risk in 6 months to 2 years after radiation. While side effects on the lungs and heart are rare, because the doses have been calculated by the treatment planning system so that the radiation dose received by the organ is less.