Cancer radiation therapy advances. Part 1 of 2. 1

Leading Swiss radiation oncology expert discusses cancer radiotherapy advances. Why 20 years ago doctors thought that radiation oncology specialty would disappear? Why two-dimensional (2D) radiotherapy is no longer used in cancer treatment? How cancer biology knowledge helps to advance radiotherapy treatments today?

Cancer radiation therapy advances discussed by top Swiss radiation oncologist. Radiation therapy treatment options. Radiotherapy has become very complex and combined with use of biological radio-sensitizers. Advanced cancer treatment by targeted radiation therapy. Medical second opinion confirms radiotherapy cancer treatment plan. Medical second opinion helps to include best radiotherapy and combination cancer therapy into comprehensive personalized treatment plan. Best precision medicine radiation therapy treatment for advanced stage cancer with metastatic lesions. Get second opinion on advanced cancer diagnosis and be confident that your precision medicine treatment is the best. Video interview with top oncologist in radiation therapy treatment from Zurich, Switzerland. Radiation Oncology advances in cancer treatment. Dr. Anton Titov, MD. Hello! We are with Dr. Stephan Bodis, who is Professor of Radiation Oncology at the University of Zurich, Switzerland. He is Director at the Institute of Radiation Oncology in Canton Hospital, Aarau. Dr. Stephan Bodis received his MD from University of Basel in Switzerland. He was a resident in Radiation Oncology at the Joint Center for Radiation Oncology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Stephan Bodis was also a Research Fellow in Pediatric Oncology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston and in Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cancer Research Center. Dr. Stephan Bodis then returned to Switzerland to take leadership positions in Radiation Oncology at hospitals affiliated with the University of Zurich. Clinical and research interests of Dr. Stephan Bodis focus on molecular radiobiology, an application of photon and proton radiotherapy in the treatment of cancer. Dr. Stephan Bodis is author of many key scientific articles on Radiation Therapy and cancer, and several book chapters on Radiation Oncology. Dr. Stephan Bodis, hello and welcome! Dr. Stephan Bodis, MD is Professor of Radiation Oncology, Zurich, Switzerland): Hello, Dr. Titov. It’s a pleasure to have you here, online. I’m looking forward to your questions and to the discussion. Dr. Anton Titov, MD. Radiation therapy is required in treatment of perhaps half of all cancers. Radiation therapy also has become very complex. There is use of radiosensitizing agents, different types of radiation, including proton beam therapy to treat cancer. Advanced computation of radiation therapy cancer targets helps to decrease the damage to healthy tissues, especially in radiation of the brain, for example. One could say that radiation and surgery are firmly on the conversion path. In what kind of cancer tumors radiation therapy has made a particular difference? Perhaps, you can describe a couple of truly innovative advances as radiation therapy in oncology today. Dr. Stephan Bodis, MD. Professor of Radiation Oncology, Zurich, Switzerland. This is an important question to start with. Because not so long time ago, 35 years ago, in Switzerland, there was a serious question. It was raised by some medical faculties and by pharmaceutical companies. They thought that within 20 years from then, Radiation Oncology will disappear. Because of the progress of new cancer medication, specifically, molecular targeted cancer medications. This has changed. Let me give you a brief outline of the history for radiotherapy technology. Let’s discuss key steps in clinical progress for Radiation Oncology. Sometimes you look back, probably until 1980, we predominantly delivered a 2D cancer radiotherapy. This was crude radiotherapy, based on the experience of the professionals. Radiation oncology treatment planning was done with some plain x-rays and some really archaic tools. Dr. Stephan Bodis, MD (Professor of Radiation Oncology, Zurich, Switzerland). 2D radiotherapy is no longer something which we should do, except in a setting for palliative care. Advances in radiotherapy of Hodgkin’s lymphoma, breast cancer, lung cancer, proton beam therapy, hyperthermia. Video interview with top Swiss oncologist.