Radiation Oncology Clinic Assoc. Dr. According to the information given by Alaettin ARSLAN about his clinic and clinical services;
Radiotherapy (radiation therapy) refers to the treatment of cancer using ionizing radiation. Today, a targeted treatment approach is applied in radiotherapy, which has a 60% place in cancer treatment. During radiotherapy, the tumor area is determined, and the rays are sent at a higher dose and only to the cancerous cell. Radiotherapy, which is used in almost all cancer treatments, is the only treatment method, especially for some types of cancer. Radiotherapy can be applied in different ways and times depending on the characteristics of the patient and the tumor.
● Radiotherapy is sometimes given before surgery to shrink the tumor. In some tumors, it is applied to clean the cancer cells that may remain after surgery.
● In some tumors, it is applied together with chemotherapy or alone as primary treatment.
● In some advanced cases, it can be applied for palliative purposes to relieve pain due to spread to bones and other organs, to relieve congestion in some organs, or to stop tumor-induced bleeding from organs such as lungs, stomach and urinary bladder
.● It is rarely used to prevent the formation of some metastases or to prevent some benign diseases. As a result, more than half of cancer patients receive radiotherapy in addition to treatments such as surgery and drug therapy. Radiotherapy is a treatment that can last between 1 day and 7 weeks, depending on the location and stage of the disease, together with the technique used. Each session takes different times depending on the technique used. Our radiotherapy unit is in the basement of the General Hospital. There are 4 doctors working in our unit. In addition, we have 3 health physicists, 10 radiotherapy technicians and 1 training nurse. On the 6th floor of the KVC building, we have 17 beds, 9 of them single and 8 of them double. We are the only center with inpatient service in Kayseri. In this way, patients with poor general health status and patients with limited opportunities coming from the surrounding provinces can receive inpatient treatment.
There are 1 Radiotherapy Simulation Tomography with 4-dimensional breath control system and 2 Linear Accelerator Radiotherapy devices in our unit. With these devices in our clinic
● 3D Conformal Radiotherapy,
● Intensity Modulated Radiotherapy (IMRT), in which the intensity of each beam can be adjusted separately and thus allows us to wrap the tumor all around,
● Volumetric Arch Therapy (VMAT), which can be treated from any angle by rotating 360 degrees around the patient
● Stereotactic Radiosurgery or Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy (SRC/SBRT), which we can call point irradiation, can be performed. 2 RT devices in our unit have the capacity to treat an average of 80 patients per day. Patients who apply to our clinic are treated on the same day or within 1-2 days without an appointment. With the developing technology, RT techniques that completely surround the tumor and target only the cancerous area are applied. Some tumors or tumor metastases can be treated with point irradiation with SRC/SBRT technique in 1 or several sessions. High quality images are taken and confirmed with planning images during daily sessions. Thus, healthy tissues can be protected more, and because very high beams can be used, the tumor can be controlled at a higher rate. As a result, thanks to the RT devices that are constantly developed in parallel with technological developments, tumoral tissues and areas are treated in the best way, while the surrounding tissues are protected from the negative side effects of RT, and patients can tolerate the treatment more easily.
04.01.2023