Benign illness
Benign illness

Treating benign illnesses with radiotherapy

Anyone who only thinks of cancer when they hear the word radiotherapy is wrong – it also successfully treats benign illnesses

Chronic pain, limited movement and a significant burden caused by constant medication intake are part for the course for many benign illnesses. For example, these include inflammatory soft tissue disorders, degenerative joint diseases or the inflammation of connective tissue. Frequently, conventional non-surgical treatments have reached their limits in these cases. Benign illnesses can be treated with radiotherapy because of the anti-inflammatory effect of this treatment method – benign illnesses such as athlete’s foot or tennis elbow are treated very successfully with radiotherapy. Arthrosis patients can also benefit from radiation treatment. Around 60 to 70 percent of people affected are permanently pain-free after radiotherapy – benign illnesses are often treated less successfully with traditional therapies. And even recurring joint effusions occur significantly more rarely after radiotherapy.

Low radiation doses but significant success

Medical professionals have found great success in different test groups when investigating how far the radiation dose can be reduced by. With divided radiation, cancer patients receive maximum doses of around 2.5 Gray per day. Benign illnesses can be treated well with individual doses of only 0.5 Gray. Over 80 percent of patients report the complete disappearance of pain after radiotherapy – this figure rises to 90 percent after two years. Since the low individual doses mean that none of the side effects of radiotherapy occur, this method is a good option for treating illnesses that have been resistant to conventional treatment methods. Radiotherapy for benign illnesses are normally offered in all radiotherapy centers.

The Radiotherapy Patient System RPS ensures safe and comfortable positioning during the radiation therapy. It can be lowered to a height of only 64 centimeters so even wheelchair users can get onto it with ease. Would you like to find out more about RPS? Then send us your questions via email. Write to us at info@gkteso.de.