Radiation therapy is a carefully targeted and regulated x-ray treatment that damages or destroys cancer cells in the body. At Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center, your radiation oncologist will oversee your radiation therapy treatments and collaborate with other members of the radiation therapy team to develop and ensure accurate, personalized delivery of your treatment plan. Your radiation oncologist will also work closely with your team of doctors to maximize the therapy’s effectiveness before, during and after your course of cancer treatment.
Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center is committed to providing the highest standard of care and offering our patients the most up-to-date, leading-edge radiation treatment technology in the nation. Our radiation oncology team treats patients using state-of-the-art technology. Many innovative practices that have improved radiation-based imaging and treatment technology here at the Cancer Center and around the world are a result of collaboration between our physicians and medical physicists. Together, our oncologists and scientists are finding new ways to use technology to enhance patient care.
Learn more at marybird.org/technology.
This procedure uses a computer to generate a picture of the tumor to help guide the radiation beam during radiation therapy treatment. The images are created using CT, ultrasound, x-ray or other imaging techniques and allows for more precise alignment of radiation beams for treatment. IGRT makes radiation therapy more accurate and can reduce damage to healthy tissue.
This type of radiation therapy is carefully planned using three-dimensional computer-generated images to show the size and shape of the tumor. The radiation beams then target the tumor from multiple angles at varying intensities. This type of radiation therapy allows for more precise targeting of the tumor and reduces the damage to healthy tissue near the tumor.
VMAT is one of the most advanced methods of delivering IMRT treatment. The machine rotates in real time while continuously delivering high-dose, focused radiation beams. This method allows for more accurate targeting of the tumor and shorter treatment times.
In this radiation delivery technique, radiation beams are delivered from outside of the patient’s body and targeted at the tumor site. The method helps with targeting precision and reducing damage to healthy tissues.
Types of external beam radiation therapy include:
In Brachytherapy, radioactive sources are placed within the patient’s body in effort to eliminate cancer cells and shrink tumors. This allows for a highly localized dose of radiation with less damage to surrounding tissue. These source implants can be temporary or permanent depending on the type of tumor being treated.
The Cancer Center offers an innovative technique for delivering even safer treatments to many breast cancer patients. The breath hold technique is based on research aimed at improving radiation therapy treatment for women with left-sided breast cancer, as well as for patients with a variety of other cancers. This technique helps to improve efficiency while also reducing damage to healthy tissues and organs.
Main Campus
4950 Essen Lane
Baton Rouge, LA 70809
(225) 767-0847
Woman's Hospital
500 Rue de la Vie
Baton Rouge, LA 70817
(225) 215-7100
1203 S. Tyler Street
Covington, LA 70433
(985) 875-2234
1104 Louisiana 30 W
Gonzales, LA 70737
(225) 644-1205
15728 Paul Vega Medical Center Drive
Hammond, LA 70403
(985) 542-5000
8166 Main Street, Suite 101
Houma, LA 70360
(985) 876-9045
133 Jeff Davis Boulevard
Natchez, MS 39120
(601) 442-1285