Radiation Oncology

Fighting Cancer with Radiation Treatments

As part of your cancer treatment plan, your doctor may recommend radiation treatment.

You will meet with a radiation oncologist, a doctor specially trained to deliver radiation treatments. They will work with you and your cancer care team to develop a treatment plan.

We’re here to support you, answer your questions and make sure you get the best cancer care from your first appointment onward.

What is Radiation Therapy?

Radiation therapy targets cancerous tumors, killing or damaging them so they can’t grow, multiply or spread. Your radiation oncology team at Sanford Health offers the latest technologies to prescribe and deliver this type of treatment.

Learn about how radiation treatment helps to fight cancer, including:

• Why to get radiation
• What to expect from radiation
• Common side effects of radiation
• Your radiation therapy team

Watch the video.

Radiation Treatments

Your cancer care team will discuss your options and recommend a radiation treatment plan that is right for you and your needs. Learn more about different types of radiation therapy:

Radiosurgery. Doctors can pinpoint and deliver a one-time high dose of radiation to the tumor’s exact location through stereotactic radiosurgery. This can be a good option for patients with tumors deep inside the body or brain and is often used when surgery is not an option.

Brachytherapy. This radiation treatment is delivered directly into your body, placed as close to the cancer as possible through an implant filled with radioactive materials. 

External beam therapy. Delivered by a linear accelerator, this form of radiation uses a beam of radiation to target the tumor site. Using real-time advanced imaging technology, the Varian radiotherapy system uses a beam of radiation to target tumors, even in sensitive areas, and deliver treatment with accuracy and speed.

The linear accelerator monitors motion in real time and corrects any patient movement to protect healthy tissue. It delivers treatment faster, both by the rate of dose delivery and its ability to treat multiple targets simultaneously. Because of this, patients are more comfortable during treatments and heal in fewer sessions.

Intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT). This technology allows delivery of radiation directly to the site during surgery. We offer IORT in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT). Oncologists target tumors in a more accurate way by concentrating radiation on only the tumor. With this technique, healthy cells and organs close to the cancer stay better protected.

Hypofractionated therapy or accelerated partial breast irradiation (APBI). By improving accuracy in targeting cancer cells, this therapy increases the amount of radiation delivered per treatment and therefore reduces the number of treatments necessary.