Physics World Weekly Podcast
Ionizing radiation: its biological impacts and how it is used to treat disease
Mar 13, 2025
Ileana Silvestre Patallo is a medical physicist at the UK's National Physical Laboratory, and Ruth McLauchlan is a consultant radiotherapy physicist at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. They dive into the dual nature of ionizing radiation, detailing how it can both harm and heal. The discussion covers the precision of radiotherapy in targeting cancer cells while protecting healthy tissue, the evolution of treatment techniques, and exciting innovations like flash radiotherapy. They emphasize the importance of technology in improving patient outcomes.
37:49
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Quick takeaways
- Radiotherapy effectively targets and damages cancer cells' DNA while allowing healthy cells to recover through a fractionation approach.
- Advancements like image guidance systems and adaptive radiotherapy enhance the precision of treatment, minimizing damage to surrounding healthy tissues.
Deep dives
Understanding Radiotherapy Mechanisms
Radiotherapy employs high-energy radiation, such as X-rays and charged particles, to target and eliminate cancer cells by damaging their DNA. This process hampers the cancer cells' ability to divide and triggers their death, a phenomenon that can continue for weeks following treatment. While radiotherapy is designed to maximize tumor destruction, it may also temporarily harm healthy cells; however, most healthy cells can recover after treatment. The challenges lie in precisely targeting tumors to minimize damage to surrounding healthy tissue, which continues to be a focal point for medical physicists.
