Radiation therapy uses beams of powerful energy, such as X-rays and protons, to destroy the cancer cells. Radiation therapy is sometimes combined with chemotherapy to treat bladder cancer in certain situations, such as when surgery isn’t an option or isn’t desired. Radiation therapy can be used as part of the treatment for some early-stage bladder cancers and after surgery that doesn’t remove the whole bladder (such as TURBT). It can also be used as the main treatment for people with earlier-stage cancers who can’t have surgery or chemotherapy or to try to avoid surgical removal of the bladder. Radiation can also be a part of the treatment for bladder cancer that has spread to other parts of the body. Treatments are scheduled Monday through Friday over the course of several weeks. In some cases, we can delivery higher doses of radiation in fewer treatments.

Your treatment is custom-tailored and unique to your diagnosis, tumor size, location and involvement. Your radiation oncologist (a doctor who specializes in treating cancer with radiation) will review all available treatment options and recommend a personalized plan for you based on national guidelines, which guide all cancer treatments. Radiation therapy is used either alone or in combination with other treatments such as chemotherapy and surgery. Radiation can be delivered either from outside the body with a machine called a linear accelerator (external beam radiation) or from a radiation source implanted permanently or temporarily in the body (brachytherapy).