Radiation for Ovarian Cancer
- During radiation for ovarian cancer, a patient will lie on a table under an X-ray-like machine
- The high-energy beams that the machine emits will cause damage to the DNA inside the cancer cells
- This damage, called “double-strand breaks” ultimately kills the cancer cells when they try to divide
How does this process treat cancer? As Dr. Chika Nwachukwu, a radiation oncologist at UT Southwestern Medical Center explains, the high-energy particles directly cause damage to the DNA inside the cancer cells. This damage, Dr. Nwachukwu says, is called “double-strand breaks,” which can be lethal to the tumor cells when they attempt to divide and spread once more.
Read More There are many different kinds of radiation, but the idea is generally the same: the high-energy beams break up the cancer cells’ DNA. To maximize the damage to the cancer cells while minimizing damage to the body’s other, healthy cells, a woman receiving radiation for ovarian cancer remains in a very specific position during the treatment — and this position must be replicated during each session, explains Dr. Nwachukwu, who adds that patients will not feel anything inside their body during the actual treatment.
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