Why Radiation Therapy is a Better Option than Surgery and Chemotherapy

Cancer has become a menace to almost everyone in the universe. This is because either you, a family member, or a friend is suffering from one or another type of cancer. It has become a significant issue in the world today, especially in the developing world. This is just because of the high cost of treating and managing it. It is a disease that is mainly characterized by the growth and multiplication of cells in the human body, making it difficult for the body to control. Eventually, these cells grow into large masses known as tumors.

However, there has been a lot of research geared towards the treatment and management of cancer. Therefore, scientists and doctors have come up with several ways of treating it; this includes chemotherapy, radiation, surgery, biologic therapy, and other unconventional ways (Miller et al., 1981). However, I firmly believe that among the three main ways of treating cancer, radiation therapy is much better than surgery and chemotherapy because it doesn’t require operations, has fewer side effects, and is safer to administer.

By using radiation therapy, patients and doctors tend to avoid surgery. This is primarily because radiation is geared towards shrinking the malignant cells without the need for surgery. It applies highly advanced technology that, once delivered, directly targets and kills the cancerous cells. While surgery will require the patient to undergo a lot of pain that can be recurrent because sometimes they need more than one surgery, radiation is always delivered in short sessions (Al-Sarraf et al., 1998). The treatment is short-lived since one session can only last for a few minutes, and moreover, it is not painful at all. Furthermore, surgery patients tend to require more attention after the operation than those who chose radiation. However, the difference becomes more pronounced for older patients, where mortality rates increase as well.

In addition to this, radiation tends to focus primarily on the affected area, unlike chemotherapy. Thus, the patients will experience fewer side effects while undergoing radiotherapy than when using chemotherapy. While radiotherapy uses a radiation technique directed at a specific place, chemotherapy employs the use of drugs. These drugs are designed to kill the cancerous cells but are not limited to the affected region (Miller et al., 1981). Therefore, they work throughout the patients' bodies. Consequently, they can be useful in preventing the cells from migrating to other body parts, but at the same time, they can also indiscriminately attack other healthy cells.

Lastly, many doctors will prefer the use of radiation over chemotherapy and surgery because it is considered the safest option. Since surgery is painful and requires post-treatment attention and care, and chemotherapy puts the whole body at risk, radiation therapy thus becomes the most reliable option. Furthermore, chemotherapy can produce severe long-term effects on the patient. In some instances, it doesn’t only kill the cancerous cells but can also attack and kill the other healthy cells. The chemotherapy drugs make the patient feel fatigued, make him vomit, cause a loss of appetite, and even make him always nauseated. In addition to this, chemotherapy also presents a danger to the people assisting the patient (Peter III et al., 2000). The drugs require specialized care and can be hazardous if not handled with care.

In conclusion, in the treatment of cancer, radiotherapy edges out the other two main types of treatment, which include surgery and chemotherapy. This is because, by using radiation, surgery, which causes untold pain and suffering, is avoided. The radiation process is localized, unlike the chemotherapy drugs, which affect the whole body. Lastly, unlike both surgery and chemotherapy, radiation is the safest option because it is painless and straightforward, without as many side effects as the two methods.

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