Definition

1. Noun:
   • A medical treatment for disease, especially cancer, using controlled exposure to radiation: Radiotherapy is a therapeutic procedure that employs high-energy radiation, such as X-rays or gamma rays, to damage or destroy cancerous cells and shrink tumors.

Usage

• Radiotherapy is a common and essential treatment in oncology.
• It is often used alone or in combination with other treatments like surgery or chemotherapy.
• The term is typically used in a medical or clinical context.

Examples

• Noun:
  • The oncologist recommended a course of radiotherapy to target the tumor.
  • Advances in radiotherapy have improved precision and reduced side effects.
  • She underwent radiotherapy for six weeks following her surgery.

Advanced Usage

• "Adjuvant radiotherapy": Radiotherapy given after the primary treatment (like surgery) to kill any remaining microscopic cancer cells.
  • He received adjuvant radiotherapy to lower the risk of the cancer returning.
• "Palliative radiotherapy": Radiotherapy used not to cure, but to relieve symptoms and improve quality of life, such as reducing pain from bone metastases.
  • Palliative radiotherapy helped manage the pain from the advanced cancer.

Variants and Related Words

• Radiation therapy: A full synonym for radiotherapy.
  • Radiation therapy is another term for the same treatment.
• Radiotherapist (noun): A specialist who administers radiotherapy.
  • The radiotherapist planned the precise dosage and target area.
• Teletherapy (noun): A type of radiotherapy where the radiation source is outside the body.
• Brachytherapy (noun): A type of radiotherapy where a radioactive source is placed inside or very close to the tumor.

Synonyms

• Radiation therapy: The most direct synonym.
• Irradiation: A more technical term for exposure to radiation, which can be used in a therapeutic context.

Related Phrases

• "To undergo radiotherapy": To receive radiotherapy treatment.
  • The patient will need to undergo radiotherapy.
• "A session of radiotherapy": One instance or appointment in a radiotherapy treatment plan.
  • Each session of radiotherapy lasts only a few minutes.

Noun

1. (medicine) the treatment of disease (especially cancer) by exposure to a radioactive substance