Helical tomotherapy
Another type of IMRT, this technique uses a large linear accelerator inside a doughnut-shaped contraption that spirals around a patient's body during treatment, delivering beams of radiation from many angles. Advocates believe this technique, also called a spiral CT scan, allows even more precisely focused radiation. It's also sometimes used as a screening technique as well.
Respiratory gated radiation therapy
Because radiation therapy requires such precise targeting, even the tiny movements caused by breathing, swallowing, and blood flow can throw off the radiation beams and lead to tissue damage. To solve this problem, respiratory gated treatment employs computer imaging to map radiation treatment so that the dose of radiation is modified to accommodate changes in the shape of the tumor caused by the patient's breathing or swallowing. (Without respiratory gating, doctors typically radiate the entire area that the tumor moves through as the patient breathes, which causes radiation to be delivered to healthy tissue.)
Sometimes called target motion management, this brand-new therapy increases the success of treatment for tumors in the lung, in the breast near the lung or heart, or in the neck or thyroid.
Stereotactic radiosurgery
Used almost exclusively for brain tumors, this technique aims a very high-dose radiation beam at a small area during a single session. It's the dramatic procedure you see on hospital shows during which the patient's head is enclosed inside a frame to hold it still. A related technique, stereotactic radiotherapy, uses smaller, fractional doses of radiation given multiple times. It's being studied for potential use on tumors in the lung as well as in the head.
I had breast cancer and tumor removed from one breast. Howvever, because I went online to research radiation, I found there is a new procedure for radiation after surgery called "mammasite", This involves the surgeon during surgery to remove tumer, to implant a bulb apparatus inside the breast and having wires, protrubing out by your breast. Not everyone can qualify it depends on location of the tumor. What is great is that you only have radiation for five day twice a day. The radiation machine or whatever is attached to these tubes which were implanted inside your breast. I had no pain just a little discomfort and I had a wonderful doctor, surgeon and radiation center staff who provided me with the care above and beyond what I expected to have. They knew I wanted to go home for thanksgiving and the radiation staff finished my last treatment at five am in the morning so I go home for the holiday. Also, the removal of this implant did not hurt at all. Would I go through this again, yes definitely would. I was so worried for weeks thinking about going through surgery and radiation and if you have the right doctors and radiation center like I had, you are home free. God bless all of them who took care of me. Ladies, do your homework like I did and research all your options with your doctor and wherever information is available and then decide whats best for you. My first surgeon who must of been loco, told me I had only two options remove lump or breast and five to six weeks of radiation and let him know. I went to cancer close to home, but they wanted 7000 dollars first because my insurance was not in their network. Then I said goodbye to this doctor and cancer center and God directedme to this wonderful cancer center which was farther away and covered under my insurance. However, I would of gone to China if I had to. Anyway, there was ahospitality place we stayed in during testing, surgery and radiation. My advice its your body and make sure your surgeon and radiation center is okay. Check everything out and take control.