shrinkage of tumor with radiation...how does it work?

Question

my dad has been going to radiation treatment about 8 times now. the doctor took a measurement of the tumor after 4 treatments and said that he noticed that it had gotten smaller. and he did some calculations that i guess were pertaining to the volume of the growth. however, we don't notice a difference in size of it and my dad doesn't feel any different. has anyone had this type of experience with treatment? where it actually takes awhile to kick in like that, while the doctor notices a difference?

Answer 1

I am sorry your dad has cancer and that he and you and the rest of the family have to go through this. What kind of cancer does your dad have? Everyone responds differently to treatment and cancer is so unpredictable that it is often hard to judge exactly what is happening when you are right in the middle of it. If the doctors say it is shrinking then I would believe them. They wouldn't tell you that if it wasn't.

My husband and I have had some experience with cancer, radiation, chemotherapy, etc. as he was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer a year ago. His radiation was for pain control. Feel free to contact me if I can be of any help.

Answer 2

Specifically, radiation kills cells by damaging DNA either directly or via the production of free radicals. Regarding the shrinkage of your dad's tumor, it is possible that you and he don't see the change because it is gradual, the same way someone might not notice gaining ten pounds in one year. Also, the field of oncology often speaks in terms of millimeters, which are a very small unit of measurement which may not be noticeable to the human eye. I find this question to be a little peculiar without knowing all of the details. Is your dad's tumor on the skin's surface? Also, I am curious what "measurements" his doctor took. Did your dad have a repeat CT scan? This would probably be the most accurate form of measurement. Also, it is unusual for the doctor to make a statement like this after only 8 treatments. It is more common for testing to be done 1-3 months after the completion of radiation. Having said this, radiation DOES shrink tumors. You will probably start to see the difference soon if the tumor is on the surface of the skin.
side note-one of the other answers stated that a combination of chemo and radiation works best. While this is true for some cancers, it is not true for all. If your dad is not receiving chemo, it is probably because that treatment has not been found to be effective for his type or stage of cancer, so don't be discouraged.

Answer 3

A combination of Radiation and Chemotherapy usually work the best. It worked pretty well for my father 85% of the cancer gone. The part that sucks is that they have to stop the treatments to give the body time to recupe because they kill the good and bad cells with those treatments. Thats when my dad ent down hill and he passed away before the doctors even knew what happened! So be carefull spend all the time you can with your dad. Love him and let him love you! Good luck.

Answer 4

The radiation causes the cancer cells to die. The doctors are trained to see differences in the sizes of tumors - its what they do. A difference you might not be able to see might be quite visible to them.

Answer 5

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Good Luck

Answer 6

im sure u know a lot about radiation treatments.....read more on the link below....for more info

Answer 7

It sounds terminal, so radiation is merely palliative care at this point.

Answer 8

Go to http://www.naturalcures.com/

Answer 9

Please see the webpages for more details on Radiation therapy.