The Benefits of Prostate Cancer Radiation Therapy
Through prostate cancer radiation therapy, hundreds of men have beaten their cancer and lived to tell the tale.
The most recent census taken on prostate cancer in the United States reports that 238,590 American men have been diagnosed and 29,720 American men have died of prostate cancer. Although more are diagnosed each year, the tools of modern science continue to provide more and more success stories. Today advanced prostate cancer radiation treatment arms hundreds of men with the proper tools to beat their cancer.
Radiation therapy provides a curable solution. Since it was first developed early in the 20th century, prostate cancer radiation treatments have continued to evolve. There are two primary types of radiation treatments – teletherapy and brachytherapy. Teletherapy (also known as External Beam Radiotherapy) has become the most common radiation therapy for prostate cancer. This is because it utilizes external radiation carefully pointed at infected areas of the body. Most patients find this more comfortable as well as more affordable. Some patients and scientists prefer brachytherapy. For brachytherapy the source of radiation is inserted into the body itself. External therapy (teletherapy) requires incredibly regular doctor appointments. Both forms of prostate cancer radiation therapy have proven successful.
Prostate cancer cells will continue to grow and divide inside of a person’s body if untreated. The high level X-ray utilized by radiation therapy for prostate cancer directly interferes with the reproduction of cancer cells. Radiation corrupts cellular DNA by inserting duplications into the DNA itself. Consider the stories of poisonous radiation caused by the afterlife of an atomic bomb. Radiation therapy utilizes similar principles. The same type of radiation that would cause abnormal mutations in human cells that lead to death, when localized to cancerous cells, merely cause the cancer to die. The ultimate purpose of prostate cancer radiation treatment is to submit the cancerous cells to lethal radiation levels until they go extinct through an inability to reproduce.
Piling evidence proves that clients who take care of themselves during treatment not only recover faster, but also have a higher success rate. For the duration of radiation (which is approximately 9 months), patients who stick to a nutritious diet have reported stronger recovery from treatment side effects. Healthy eating provides recovering people with the energy too not only fulfill daily activities but (more importantly) it gives their body the strength to heal the infection. Many patients consult a dietitian during this time to aide them through the transitional period.
Remember, prostate cancer does not have to be lethal. Through radiation therapy, nutritious eating, and positive thinking hundreds of American men live healthy lives.
