Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT)

Radiation therapy is the use of high-energy x-rays or radioactive materials to kill cancer cells. This radiation injures the cancer cells so that they can no longer continue to divide and multiply.  Each treatment causes more cells to die, reducing the size of the cancerous tumor. Radiation therapy incorporates various techniques, including external electron or photon beams or internal radiation.  The treatment is odorless and invisible.  Your radiation oncologist and medical oncologist will work together closely to determine if your treatment will include radiation therapy. 

Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) is an advanced form of radiation treatment that allows radiation oncologists to precisely target tumor cells. It is a noninvasive therapy that uses Computed Tomography (CT) and often other imaging modalities to build three-dimensional diagnostic images and treatment planning to deliver tightly focused radiation beams of varying intensity to cancerous tumors without needles, tubes or catheters.

How It Works

Before IMRT treatments begin, you will attend a preparation session called a simulation. A special Computed Tomography (CT) is performed in the treatment position, which will be used to design the treatment plan. Doctors may also mark the target on your skin with colored, semi-permanent ink or a small tattoo to help them align the IMRT equipment during treatments and may develop special molded devices that help you remain in the same position.

Following the simulation, a treatment plan that is right for your specific needs will be designed. This process may take several days because it will involve input from the radiation oncologist, physicist and dosimetrist. Once it is complete, the IMRT treatments will begin.

During treatment, you will be positioned on the table below a linear accelerator, which delivers the radiation beams. Patients cannot see or hear the radiation and usually do not feel anything. A typical IMRT session lasts about 15 to 20 minutes, the same amount of time required for a standard radiation treatment. Treatments are usually delivered five days a week.