Back to Baptist Health
Baptist Health South Florida

Lynn Cancer Institute

Appointments
 

Radiation Oncology

Contact Us Find a Location
or call us at 561-955-5966

Cancer is a complex disease. Treating it can also be complicated and require multiple therapy options. At Eugene M. & Christine E. Lynn Cancer Institute, we offer a wide range of state-of-the-art radiation therapies to ensure you receive the most comprehensive cancer care available.

Radiation therapy is one of the most common cancer treatments. More than half of people with cancer receive radiation therapy either alone or combined with another cancer treatment. Our expert radiation oncology team will work with you to develop a personalized treatment plan that includes the right therapy option and approach for your type of cancer.

As your healthcare partner, we will explain the details of your cancer and what you can expect from radiation treatment. And we’ll be by your side at every step of your cancer journey.

How Radiation Therapy Works

Radiation therapy uses high-energy X-rays, electrons or other radiation sources to target and damage or destroy your cancer cells. It can also shrink your tumor. Radiation therapy may be an appropriate treatment during the early stages of cancer or after it has spread.

There are two types of radiation that attack cancer cells:

  • External radiation: This therapy uses machines to direct a radiation beam to the specific areas of your body where cancer cells exist.
  • Internal radiation: This therapy places radiation sources like brachytherapy inside your tumor or as close to your tumor site as possible.
Our Approach to Care

Our Approach to Care

At Lynn Cancer Institute, we know you and your cancer are unique. To get the best results, you need a personalized approach to your care. That’s why our entire radiation therapy team comes together to design your treatment plan.

Radiation therapy can be a stand-alone cancer treatment, or we can use it with another therapy like surgery or chemotherapy. Our radiation oncologists know if you’ve received other treatments, and they will review those results before you begin radiation therapy.

Depending on the type and location of your cancer, your physician will decide if you need external or internal radiation and which modality (machine or equipment) would be best. Once we determine the approach to your radiation treatment, you will have a CT scan. This is a treatment simulation that helps us identify exactly where to send the radiation. We will use this information to design a treatment plan that includes your number of treatments and how much radiation and beam targeting you’ll need for each treatment session.

Radiation Therapies We Provide

Our radiation oncologists work with your cancer treatment team to determine the best approach to your care and to develop a schedule for your treatments. At Lynn Cancer Institute, we’re committed to using the most advanced technologies to deliver your therapy.

Depending on your personalized treatment plan, your radiation therapy may include some of our state-of-the-art machines and techniques that deliver external radiation. These tools and technologies include:

  • Image guided radiation therapy (IGRT)
  • Intensity modulated radiation therapy (Varian RapidArc®)
  • Radiosurgery (CyberKnife, Novalis TX™, TrueBeam and ViewRay MRIdian® MRI-guided radiation therapy)

Other radiation therapy options include:

  • Brachytherapy (AccuBoost™)
  • Radioimmunotherapy/drug therapy (TheraSphere®, SIR-Spheres®)
Meet the Team

Meet the Team

We’re proud that our radiation oncology team members have decades of experience with our program. They are committed to a team-based, patient-centered approach to care that gives you the individualized treatment you need. We are a dedicated family, and we will treat you like a member of that family.

Our multidisciplinary radiation oncology team works together to give you the most supportive, highest quality care available. Your care team includes:

  • Radiation oncologist: A specially trained physician who can treat your cancer with radiation and oversee your care.
  • Radiation therapist: A trained, licensed therapist who delivers radiation therapy under supervision from your radiation oncologist.
  • Radiation oncology nurse: A registered nurse trained in oncology who coordinates your care during your treatment.
  • Medical physicist: A physicist with advanced training and certification who helps design your treatment plan and ensures the radiation treatment machines are accurate and running properly.
  • Dosimetrist: A medical professional with knowledge in radiology, physics, and anatomy and physiology who ensures you receive the right radiation dose during your treatment.

A social worker and nutritionist will also work with your care team to support your needs.

Patient Services

You can trust the knowledgeable professionals at Lynn Cancer Institute to guide you through your treatment with a combination of compassion and forward-thinking medicine.

Technology

Lynn Cancer Institute offers a wide range of state-of-the-art radiation therapy options — including the most advanced technology available.
Learn more about cancer care at Lynn Cancer Institute.

Learn more about cancer care at Lynn Cancer Institute.

Our radiation oncologists work with your cancer treatment team to determine the best approach and develop a schedule for your treatments.

ViewRay MRIdian® MRI-Guided Radiation Therapy

ViewRay MRIdian® MRI-Guided Radiation Therapy

At Lynn Cancer Institute, we are leaders in radiation technology. Our radiation oncologists deliver some of the most advanced radiation treatments available. And we are one of the few cancer centers in the United States to offer ViewRay MRIdian® MRI-guided radiation therapy, a highly sophisticated radiation therapy system.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • More than half of people with cancer receive some type of radiation therapy. Many are cancer survivors who had radiation therapy alone or combined with another cancer treatment. Radiation therapy is frequently combined with chemotherapy and surgery.

    Radiation and chemotherapy can work hand-in-hand. Chemotherapy is a systemic treatment that reaches your entire body through your bloodstream. Radiation can improve chemotherapy outcomes because it’s another method of reducing tumor size. Chemotherapy can sensitize cancer cells to radiation to improve radiation therapy outcomes.

    Radiation is often used after surgery to stop any remaining cancer cells from growing, returning or spreading to other parts of your body. Unfortunately, stopping the spread of cancer isn’t always possible. In those cases, radiation can reduce pain, tumor size and cancer symptoms to improve quality of life for terminally ill patients.

  • Side effects from radiation therapy can be different for everyone. Your radiation oncologists will talk with you about any potential side effects associated with your specific treatment before you begin. Most side effects are limited to the area of your body receiving treatment. They can also depend on your age, general health and whether you’ve had other cancer treatments like chemotherapy or surgery.

  • You can’t feel radiation during your treatment. Sometimes the skin becomes tender at your treatment spot.

  • You will only lose hair where the radiation beam enters and leaves your body. Radiation is unlike chemotherapy that causes all your body hair to fall out.

  • If you’re receiving external beam radiation, your visits will last roughly 30 minutes from the time you arrive to the time you leave. Your treatment will only last a few minutes. You’ll spend the rest of the time preparing for your therapy. Brachytherapy, stereotactic radiosurgery and stereotactic body radiation therapy can take longer, so you’ll spend more time in the department. Your clinicians can give you an estimate of how much time your specific visit will take.

  • Your radiation oncologist will determine how many treatments you need.

  • Yes. If you can drive to the radiation treatment, you will be able to drive home.

  • No. External radiation does not make you radioactive.

Clinical Trials

Clinical Trials

At Lynn Cancer Institute, we treat cancer in today’s patients and offer hope for those who may get the disease in the future. Through clinical trials, we study promising new ways to diagnose and treat cancer. As our patient, you have access to trials and treatments that aren’t widely available elsewhere.

If a clinical trial may be right for you, we’ll talk with you about the potential benefits and risks. We make your overall well-being and safety our top priority if you choose to participate.

Make Appointment
Or call 561-955-5966

Language Preference / Preferencia de idioma

I want to see the site in English

Continue In English

Quiero ver el sitio en Español

Continuar en español