Schedule Now Pay Bill
be_ixf;ym_202404 d_19; ct_50

Radiation Oncology

Radiation therapy is an important treatment component for many cancer patients. Our radiation oncologists at both Memorial and Elkhart General work with a cohesive clinical team to deliver personalized radiation therapy in coordination with our surgical and medical oncology specialists. For each patient, an individualized, comprehensive and detailed treatment plan is created using CT scans that render tumor location in four dimensions, allowing the radiation oncologists, dosimetrists and radiation physicists to plan for accurate treatment delivery. From day one, our clinical team will guide you through each appointment, including daily treatment and follow-up care.

What is Radiation Therapy?

Our treatment machines produce unparalleled targeted radiation to treat all types of cancer while sparing healthy tissues and minimizing side effects. Targeted radiation therapy damages the genetic material that controls how cells divide, which slows or stops tumor growth. Typically, radiation treatments are delivered daily over the course of several weeks. This allows the radiation to kill off cancerous cells while normal, healthy cells can repair and rejuvenate. Using today’s top technology along with image guidance and surface guidance, we are able to precisely focus the radiation to the tumor area, while sparing nearby critical organs such as the heart.  

Schedule an Appointment

If you’re looking for a referral or need to talk to us about your treatment options, we’re here to help. Contact us today.

Call 574.647.8300

Treatments

  • Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT): uses advanced computer programs to calculate and deliver radiation directly to cancer cells.
  • RapidArc Treatment: a radiation therapy technology that is among the most advanced forms of intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and is delivered using one of Beacon Cancer Care’s TrueBeam linear accelerators.
  • Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS): advanced, non-surgical / non-invasive, radiation therapy treatment is used to treat small cancerous brain tumors as well as select brain abnormalities. Using 3D and surface guidance imaging to pinpoint the exact target, radiation is then delivered to a small affected area, minimizing exposure to surrounding healthy tissue. SRS is performed in a single outpatient visit.
  • Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy (SABR or SBRT): a non-invasive, highly focused type of treatment in which high doses of radiation are delivered to small, well-defined tumors. An intense dose of radiation is concentrated on the tumor while limiting the dose to surrounding tissue. While typically delivered to the lung, SABR can also be used for prostate, liver, spine, pancreas and adrenal tumors. SABR is performed as an outpatient in 3 to 5 treatments.
  • HDR Brachytherapy: a type of treatment that utilizes a source of radiation introduced internally through a catheter where it remains while delivering the radiation to the cancerous area. After treatment is complete (averaging 10-20 minutes), the radioactive source is retracted safely and the catheter is removed. High dose brachytherapy may be a treatment option for patients with select prostate, breast, and gynecological cancers.
  • External Beam Radiation Therapy (EBRT)
  • Electron Beam Therapy
  • 3D Conformal Radiation Therapy

Advanced Techniques

  • Image-Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT): a method of radiation therapy that incorporates imaging techniques during each treatment session.
  • Surface Guided Radiation Therapy (SGRT): a technique which uses light and camera technology to track the patient’s skin surface.
  • Deep Inspiration Breath Hold (DIBH): this technique, used for breast cancer, delivers radiation therapy while limiting radiation exposure to the heart and lungs.
  • Prone Breast Positioning: another approach to treating breast cancer by limiting radiation exposure to the surrounding organs and tissues including the heart, lung and skin.
  • SpaceOAR Hydrogel: a relatively new advancement to aid prostate cancer patients receiving radiation therapy treatments. SpaceOAR is a hydrogel injected into the space between the prostate and rectum. The SpaceOAR helps reduce rectal injury in men receiving prostate cancer radiation therapy by acting as a spacer, pushing the rectum away from the prostate target. 
  • Prostate Seed Implant: a one-time, minimally invasive, outpatient treatment procedure for early stage prostate cancer. The procedure involves permanently implanting approximately 60-90 tiny radioactive seeds into the prostate. The permanent radioactive seeds deliver a precise dose of radiation inside the prostate before they gradually lose their radioactivity over the next few days.
  • Prostate HDR: this technique, used to treat prostate cancer, delivers a customized high dose of radiation to the prostate over just a few outpatient procedures. Very small radioactive sources are sent through catheters and stay in the prostate for a short period of time to deliver the prescribed dose of radiation.
  • Hypofractionation scheme: this technique, often used to treat breast cancer and prostate cancer, reduces the number of treatment visits from 6-7 weeks down to 3-4 weeks when medically appropriate. Larger daily doses of radiation are delivered in fewer treatments with comparable outcomes. 
  • Four-Dimensional Computed Tomography (4DCT)
  • Fiducial Markers

Inspiring stories

Finess’s story: Catching breast cancer early

We're Here for You

574.647.8300