Read article Having radiotherapy for penile cancer
This page tells you about having radiotherapy for penile cancer. You can find information on
Having radiotherapy for penile cancer
You have radiotherapy in the hospital radiotherapy department. If you are having external radiotherapy you usually have treatment once a day from Monday to Friday, with a rest over the weekend. You will have radiotherapy for between 4 and 6 weeks. Each treatment lasts a few minutes. You cannot feel it. External radiotherapy does not make you radioactive.
Planning your treatment
Radiotherapy treatment is carefully planned. On your first visit, you lie under a large machine called a simulator. This takes normal X-rays or CT scans. The doctor uses it to work out exactly where to give the treatment. Marks are made on your skin to help the radiographer line up the radiotherapy machine when you have your daily treatment.
Internal radiotherapy
This is also called brachytherapy. It involves either placing a radioactive mould over your penis, or placing radioactive wires into your penis under anaesthetic.
You will need to stay in hospital and be in a room on your own if you have brachytherapy. Treatment can last for up to 7 days. Children and pregnant women won’t be able to go into your room because both the mould and the wires release some radioactivity. When you finish your treatment, the wires are removed under either local or general anaesthetic. After the wires are out, all the radioactivity is gone, so you will be able to go home.
You can view and print the quick guides for all the pages in the treating penile cancer section.
You have radiotherapy in the hospital radiotherapy department. If you are having external radiotherapy you usually have treatment once a day from Monday to Friday, with a rest over the weekend. You will have radiotherapy for between 4 and 6 weeks. Each treatment lasts a few minutes.
Radiotherapy treatment is carefully planned. On your first visit, you may lie under a large machine called a simulator. This takes normal X-rays. Virtual simulation using a CT scanner rather than a simulator to plan treatment is becoming more common. The doctor uses either of these methods to work out exactly where to give the treatment so that
- It kills the most cancer cells
- Misses as much healthy body tissue as possible
During the planning session, marks are made on your skin. The radiographer uses these skin marks to line up the radiotherapy machine when you have your daily treatment. Don't worry if they wear off a bit, they can be re drawn. You will also have a few pinprick tattoos made during planning so that the radiographers can line up the machine accurately.
Radiotherapy doesn't hurt. You won't be able to feel it, but you need to lie very still for the few minutes that you have your treatment. The picture below shows the radiotherapy machine you will lie on.
You may have a device put on to your penis to hold it away from your body while you have treatment.
External radiotherapy doesn't make you radioactive. It is perfectly safe to be with other people, including children, throughout your course of treatment.
This is also called brachytherapy (prounounced brak-ee-therapy). You can have internal radiotherapy in two ways. Either by
- Placing a radioactive mould over your penis
- Placing radioactive wires into your penis under anaesthetic
You will need to stay in hospital and be in a room on your own if you have brachytherapy. The length of treatment varies depending on the dose of radiotherapy you are having. It can last for up to 7 days. Children and pregnant women won’t be able to go into your room because both the mould and the wires release some radioactivity. The nurses will explain the visiting restrictions to you before you start your treatment.
When you finish your treatment, the wires are removed under either local or general anaesthetic. After the wires are out, all the radioactivity is gone, so you will be able to go home.
You can find more general information about internal radiotherapy in our radiotherapy section.
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