Periodicum biologorum, Vol. 115 No. 4, 2013.
Review article
Radiation therapy in older patients
DAG ZAHIROVIĆ
; University Hospital Rijeka, Clinic for Radiotherapy and Oncology, Krešimirova 42, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia
ĐENI SMILOVIĆ RADOJČIĆ
; University Hospital Rijeka Medical Physics Department, Krešimirova 42, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia
MILAN RADOJČIĆ
; University Hospital Rijeka, Clinic for Radiotherapy and Oncology, Krešimirova 42, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia
DARIO FAJ
; Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Medical Faculty, J. Huttlera 4, 31000 Osijek, Croatia
SLAVEN JURKOVIĆ
; University Hospital Rijeka Medical Physics Department, Krešimirova 42, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia
Abstract
As average population life span increases number of people of older age
affected with malignant tumours also increases which became significant
public health issue. Main modalities in treating cancer are surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. They can be used either alone or in various combinations depending on tumour type, grade of a disease, patient’s condition etc.
Current radiation therapy techniques give the possibility to deliver
radiotherapymore precisely andwith higher doses to the tumourmeanwhile protecting surrounding tissue and preserving the physiological function of the regions in the body not involvedwith tumour. In thisway it is possible to deliver curative doses of radiation therapy in older patients without compromising their general health and conserving the life quality in satisfactory manner. Subject of this work is clinical implementation of advanced radiation therapy techniques for the cancer treatment of older patients. Thus, different systems of assessment of overall patient performance were introduced and radiotherapy of most common cancer types in elderly population
was reviewed and discussed.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
116490
URI
Publication date:
31.12.2013.
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