Treatment
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There are many ways to treat anal cancer depending on the stage, location and type of cancer. The most common cancer, i.e. Squamous cell carcinoma of the anal canal, is treated with chemoradiation therapy. Surgery is generally reserved for cases who have not responded to chemoradiation therapy.
- Surgery
- Radiation therapy for anal cancer
- Medical Oncology
- Radiation therapy with concurrent chemotherapy is the treatment of choice for Anal canal cancers.
- External Beam Radiation Therapy (EBRT) – External Beam Radiation Therapy focuses radiation from outside the body onto cancer. This is the type of radiation therapy most often used to treat anal cancer or its spread to other organs.
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Following techniques allow the doctors to give higher doses of radiation to cancer while reducing the radiation to nearby healthy tissues –
- Three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3D-CRT) uses special computers to precisely map the location of cancer. Radiation beams are then shaped and aimed at the tumor from several directions. This makes them less likely to damage normal tissues.
- Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) is a form of 3D therapy and the preferred type of EBRT for anal cancer. It uses a computer-driven machine that rotates around you as it delivers radiation. Along with shaping the beams and aiming them from several angles, the intensity (strength) of the beams can be adjusted. This helps limit the dose reaching normal tissues and can reduce some side effects.
- Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) is a type of radiation that might be used for recurrent or metastatic diseases.
- Brachytherapy (Internal Radiation) Brachytherapy is not commonly used to treat anal cancer. When it is used, it’s usually given as a radiation boost along with external radiation.
