Radiation oncology

Last week UZ Leuven used the brand new RAD-technique to irradiate a patient with breast cancer. RAD combines the advantages of two existing radiation techniques. This further protects the healthy tissue surrounding the tumour and reduces the treatment time.

For certain types of chemotherapy, scalp cooling and hand-foot cooling can limit or even prevent side effects such as hair loss and nerve damage. UZ Leuven and Think Pink have requested NIHDI to invest in accessible care. And succesfully so: as 1 January 2023 these costs are being reimbursed.

At the end of November, it was the first time a patient with oesophageal cancer was treated in Belgium. This was done in the Leuven proton therapy centre PARTICLE, as part of the first European phase 3 study on the potential benefits of proton irradiation in that type of cancer.