Palliation
Palliation INTRODUCTION Radiation therapy (RT) can be a highly effective tool for the treatment of symptoms caused by progressive gynecologic cancers. Common indications for palliative treatment of gynecologic cancers include…
Unknown Primary
Unknown Primary INTRODUCTION Most gynecologic cancers present with bleeding, pain, or other symptoms caused by an enlarging primary tumor. However, in some cases, patients are initially diagnosed when lymphadenopathy or…
Ovarian Cancer
Ovarian Cancer INTRODUCTION As will be shown later in this chapter, there is strong evidence that radiation therapy (RT) can play an important role in the curative treatment of selected…
Vulvar Cancer
Vulvar Cancer Before the mid-1980s, it was commonly believed that radiation therapy (RT) had no role in the curative management of vulvar cancer. Then in 1986, Homesley et al.1 reported…
Uterine Cancer
Uterine Cancer INTRODUCTION Most endometrial cancers are cured by simple removal of the uterus. For this reason, investigators have tended to focus their attention on improving methods of identifying the…
Vaginal Cancer
Vaginal Cancer INTRODUCTION Among the gynecologic malignancies treated with radiation therapy, vaginal cancers pose some of the greatest management challenges. Several factors contribute to this: Vaginal cancer is rare. Fewer…
Cervical Cancer
Cervical Cancer INTRODUCTION Invasive cervical cancer is relatively rare in developed countries, and only about 12,000 new cases are diagnosed each year in the United States.1 However, invasive cervical cancer…
Posttreatment Monitoring
Posttreatment Monitoring INTRODUCTION Posttreatment monitoring is an important phase of every gynecologic cancer patient’s care. Many patients will continue to have some treatment-related or tumor-related symptoms after treatment is completed;…
Brachytherapy
Brachytherapy INTRODUCTION Brachytherapy plays a critical role in the definitive management of primary and recurrent tumors within the uterus and vagina. As a general principle, to deliver a boost dose…
Monitoring During Treatment
Monitoring During Treatment INTRODUCTION The treatments administered to patients with gynecologic cancers are among the most complex in a radiation oncologist’s practice. Treatment of gynecologic cancers requires multidisciplinary collaboration, integration…
