Radiotherapy in Practice Radioisotope Therapy

Radioisotope therapy is an internal form of radiation used to treatcancer; it may be administered orally or intravenously and represents thenearest treatment option to the 'magic bullet', specifically targeting sites ofdisease whilst sparing surrounding normal tissues. Radioisotope therapy has animportant role to play in modern medicine, particularly in the treatment ofthyroid disease, neuroendocrine tumours, bone metastasis and non-Hodgkin'slymphoma. It is found in both the diagnostic setting and in therapy, butrecently there has been a renaissance in the application of radioisotopeunsealed sources in therapeutic indications. It is an active area of research,with the quest for new compounds that will be specific for therapeutic targets.This book is an essential, practical guide to the use of radioisotope therapy,and also includes the background and developmental biology which underpins itsuse. Individual tumours and diseases are explored, with specific focus given toradioiodine (I131) and monoclonal antibodies as treatment options. The barriersto radioisotope therapy, such as ease of access, acquisition of radioisotopes,radiation protection regulations and cost, are also discussed.ABOUT THE SERIESRadiotherapy remains the major non-surgical treatment modality for themanagement of malignant disease, with over 50% of patients receiving treatmentat some time during the management of their malignant disease. It is based onthe application of the principles of applied physics, radiobiology, and tumourbiology to clinical practice. Each volume in this series takes the readerthrough the basic principles of different types of radiotherapy, and thendevelops these by individual sites. This series of practical handbooks are aimedat physicians both training and practising in radiotherapy, as well as medicalphysicists, dosimetrists, radiographers and senior nurses.

Peter Hoskin qualified at the Royal Free Hospital London and trained in Clinical Oncology at the Royal Marsden Hospital. He was appointed consultant at the Royal London Hospital in 1991 and the followig year to Mount Vernon Cancer Centre with an academic post in the Department of Oncology at University College London, where he now holds a personal chair.