100 Years of Radiotherapy but public still in the dark over the treatment

Fewer than one in ten people think radiotherapy is a modern cancer treatment according to the results of a survey* published today (Friday).

The research, involving more than 2000 UK adults, highlights how little people understand about radiotherapy - a treatment which helps cure four in ten patients, more than conventional chemotherapy.

While 47 per cent of those asked thought targeted cancer drugs, like Herceptin, were modern, only nine per cent appreciated that radiotherapy is also a modern, cutting-edge treatment.

New, more targeted radiotherapy techniques such as intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) or image guided radiotherapy (IGRT) are transforming the lives of cancer patients. These new ways of delivering radiotherapy mean cancer cells are targeted more precisely, increasing cure rates, and patients experience fewer side effects.

But the survey revealed that only 15 per cent of people think radiotherapy is precise. And 40 per cent of people describe radiotherapy as frightening compared to just 16 per cent who said the same for targeted cancer drugs.

Marie Curie won her second Nobel Prize for her work on radium in 1911 - exactly 100 years ago – and was one of the leading pioneers in radiation as a cancer therapy. Radiotherapy is now recommended for half of all cancer patients as part of their treatment.

source: Cancer Research UK