How do you protect your heart from breast radiation?

We'll ask you to take and hold a deep breath — usually for 15-25 seconds — so that your breast is as far from your heart as it can be. This is called Deep Inspiration Breath Hold, or DIBH. DIBH will protect your heart during treatment.

Can breast radiation damage the heart?

While radiotherapy plays a crucial role in treating breast cancer, it can cause incidental damage to the heart and lungs, that may in turn increase the risk of heart disease and lung cancer.

Is radiation therapy hard on the heart?

These side effects, including high blood pressure, abnormal heart rhythms, and heart failure, can be caused or exacerbated by chemotherapy and radiation therapy, as well as by newer forms of cancer treatment, such as targeted therapies and immunotherapies.

How can you protect your heart from radiation?

A recent study showed that AlignRT in combination with Deep Inspiration Breath Hold effectively prevented radiation-induced abnormalities in blood flow to the heart. The CBMC radiation oncology team adopts the latest research findings to benefit patients in other ways.

What happens if radiation hits the heart?

Radiation woes

Problems can occur several years after exposure and include accelerated coronary artery disease, stiffening of the heart muscle, inflammation and thickening of the pericardial sac, problems with electrical conduction, or damage to heart valves.

Close to the Heart: Modern Radiation Therapy for Breast Cancer Treatment

What kind of damage can radiation do to the heart?

Radiation causes fibrosis of all components of the heart and significantly increases the risk of coronary artery disease, cardiomyopathy, valvulopathy, arrhythmias, and pericardial disease.

Are cardiologists exposed to radiation?

Invasive cardiologists are exposed to greater left sided cranial radiation: The BRAIN study (Brain Radiation Exposure and Attenuation during Invasive Cardiology Procedures).

What can shield you from radiation?

If in a situation where radiation exposure is unavoidable, shielding can be used to protect oneself from radiation. Examples of sheilding can be concrete bunkers, leaded glass or acrylic barriers, or personal protective shielding, such as StemRad's family of products.

What are the long term effects of left breast radiation?

Long-term side effects can include: Breast changes: The breasts may shrink or become more dense after radiation. Some women have reported problems breastfeeding. Brachial plexopathy: Radiation to the breast or chest wall can sometimes damage the nerves that run through the arm, wrist, and hand.

How soon after breast radiation do side effects start?

The early side effects appear toward the end of treatment or within a few weeks of finishing it, while the late ones can appear anywhere from six months to a year after you've completed treatment. The most common early side effects of radiation therapy in breast cancer patients are skin irritation and fatigue.

Which organ is most vulnerable to radiation?

The most radiation-sensitive organs include the hematopoietic system [4], the gastrointestinal (GI) system [5], skin [6, 7], vascular system [8, 9], reproductive system, and brain [10–12].

Can radiation cause heart blockages?

Radiation therapy aimed at the chest region for breast cancer or lung cancer, for example, can prompt a thickening of the blood vessels and heart valves, inflammation, and artery blockages. Heart problems due to radiation often impact younger people, too.

How long does it take for the breast to heal after radiation?

Most skin changes get better within a few months. Changes to the breast tissue usually go away in 6 to 12 months, but it can take longer.

What are the symptoms of radiation induced heart disease?

These include chest pain or discomfort, shortness of breath or an irregular heartbeat. Seek emergency care right away if you suspect you may be experiencing a heart attack or cardiac arrest. People who received cancer radiation therapy to their chest can develop radiation-induced heart disease years later.

Can radiation to the left breast cause AFIB?

"Moreover, treatment of breast cancer including surgery, chemotherapy and radiation, all increase the risk of developing conditions that give rise to atrial fibrillation."

Where is the heart in relation to the breast?

Your heart is located between your lungs in the middle of your chest, behind and slightly to the left of your breastbone (sternum).

How tired do you get from breast radiation?

Radiation can give you fatigue that gets worse over time (called cumulative fatigue). It usually lasts 3 to 4 weeks after your treatment stops, but it can continue for up to 3 months. Hormone therapy deprives the body of estrogen, and that can lead to fatigue that may last throughout your treatment or longer.

How much radiation do you get after a breast lumpectomy?

The standard radiation therapy approach after a lumpectomy has been to target the entire breast. The method is called whole-breast irradiation. It is typically given every day for four to six weeks.

What does radiation fatigue feel like?

Many people who get radiation therapy have fatigue. Fatigue is feeling exhausted and worn out. It can happen all at once or come on slowly. People feel fatigue in different ways and you may feel more or less fatigue than someone else who is getting the same amount of radiation therapy to the same part of the body.

What can I buy to protect against radiation?

This is why lead aprons and blankets are the most effective shielding material to fight off x-rays and gamma-ray. After all, lead has a very high number of protons in each atom (82 to be specific), which makes it a very dense metal shield.

What is the best shield against radiation?

Lead has long been considered "the element of choice" for radiation shielding due to its attenuating properties. Lead is a corrosion-resistive and malleable metal. Lead's high density (11.34 grams per cubic centimeter) makes it an effective barrier against X-ray and gamma-ray radiation.

What radiation is hardest to shield?

Gamma rays can be emitted from the nucleus of an atom during radioactive decay. They are able to travel tens of yards or more in air and can easily penetrate the human body. Shielding this very penetrating type of ionizing radiation requires thick, dense material such as several inches of lead or concrete.

What medical procedure exposes you to the most radiation?

Computed tomography (CT) is the largest contributor to medical radiation dose patients receive. Typically, CT scans impart doses to organs that are 100 times higher than doses imparted by other lower dose modalities such as chest X-rays.

How much radiation are cardiologists exposed to?

During TEER, interventional echocardiographers received a median personal dose equivalent of 10.5 μSv (IQR, 3.1-20.5 μSv). This radiation dose was 11.7-fold higher than the median dose received by interventional cardiologists (0.9 μSv; IQR, 0.1-12.2 μSv; P < . 001) (Figure 2).

Can radiation cause plaque in arteries?

Radiation treatment is known to cause cardiovascular disease (CVD) which can occur acutely during treatment or years afterward in the form of accelerated atherosclerosis.