What should you know about electron beam radiotherapy?

A treatment machine creates a beam of electrons and directs it towards a carefully marked area. Electrons release most of their energy near the surface, so this approach may suit a skin lesion or a target close to the skin. The planned field depends on the tumour's position, depth and nearby healthy tissue. It is different from a photon beam, which can travel farther through the body.

Planning can include an examination, scans, measurements and a mould or other support to help you keep still. During treatment you do not feel the electrons, and the machine does not make you radioactive. The beam is delivered during a short appointment, although the whole visit includes positioning and safety checks.

Wash the treated skin gently and follow the team’s instructions about creams, deodorant, dressings and sunlight. Do not apply a new product to the field without checking first. Tell the team about medicines, skin conditions, implanted devices and any difficulty staying in the planned position.

Skin in the treatment field may become red, dry, sore or itchy as sessions continue, and tiredness can occur. Loose clothing can reduce rubbing. Keep scheduled reviews because the team can assess the skin and adjust supportive care; do not stop a course on your own.

Contact your radiotherapy team promptly if the treated skin becomes very painful, moist, increasingly swollen, blistered or difficult to keep clean. Seek urgent medical help for breathing trouble, sudden confusion, heavy bleeding, or a rapidly worsening general illness. These symptoms are not expected simply because a treatment session has taken place.

Ask which depth and body area the beam is intended to cover, how the field will be marked, what skin changes are expected, and who to call outside appointment hours. You can also ask whether another form of radiotherapy is being considered and how treatment fits with surgery or other care.