CAROLINA REGIONAL CANCER CENTER ANNOUNCES PILOT PROGRAM FOR ADAPTIVE TREATMENT PLANNING TO FURTHER EXPAND THE BENEFITS OF ITS TOMOTHERAPY HI•ART TREATMENT SYSTEM

Carolina Regional Cancer Center (CRCC), an affiliate of MUSC Hollings Cancer Center, has initiated a Pilot Program to study the benefits of Adaptive Treatment Planning utilizing the TomoTherapy® Hi•Art® Treatment System, one of the most effective forms of radiation treatment available.  Adaptive tr... [read more]

CAROLINA REGIONAL CANCER CENTER WELCOMES NEWS AS AFFILIATE, MUSC HOLLINGS CANCER CENTER, RECEIVES PRESTIGIOUS DESIGNATION BY NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE

Carolina Regional Cancer Center (CRCC), affiliated with the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) Hollings Cancer Center (HCC), announced today that HCC recently received designation by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) as one of the top cancer research centers in the country. HCC is one of only 64 other can... [read more]

Head & Neck Cancers Side Effects

Potential side effects with head and neck radiation therapy can include the development of a sore throat, hoarseness and difficulty swallowing. Again, these side effects strictly depend on the area being treated and develop only in areas being treated. For example, delivering radiation treatments to someone's larynx or voice box will not cause his/her hair to fall out or be sick to his/her stomach. The patient could, however, develop hoarseness and a sore throat.

Additional side effects that can develop during the radiation treatments include redness of the skin, which can progress to a mild peeling of the skin similar to a sunburn. All of these side effects mentioned so far are called "acute" side effects, and they go away once the treatments are completed.

There are potential side effects which can also develop during the radiation treatments, but often persist or stay with the patient long after the treatments are completed. One of these side effects is called xerostomia or dry mouth. The salivary glands, or spit glands, are located in the head and neck region; when they are exposed to radiation therapy they often do not work as well and can leave the mouth feeling much dryer than normal.

To help limit the amount of dryness patients experience with radiation therapy, a drug has been developed which helps protect the salivary glands from the effects of the radiation.

This drug is called amifostine (Ethyol); it has been shown to help in maintaining the salivary gland function. The amifostine must be delivered through the vein or under the skin shortly before each daily radiation treatment. Potential side effects from this medication include lowering of the blood pressure (hypotension), nausea and vomiting.

An additional side effect for a gentleman being treated is that he will lose the beard in the treatment areas and it will likely not grow back.