Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Preface
- Psychology, health and illness
- Medical topics
- Abortion
- Accidents and unintentional injuries
- Acne
- Alcohol abuse
- Allergies to drugs
- Allergies to food
- Allergies: general
- Amnesia
- Amputation and phantom limb pain
- Anaesthesia and psychology
- Antenatal care
- Aphasia recovery, treatment and psychosocial adjustment
- Asthma
- Back pain
- Blindness and visual disability
- Blood donation
- Breastfeeding
- Burn injuries: psychological and social aspects
- Cancer: breast
- Cancers of the digestive tract
- Cancer: general
- Cancer: gynaecologic
- Cancer: head and neck
- Cancer: Hodgkin's and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
- Cancer: leukaemia
- Cancer: lung
- Cancer: prostate
- Cancer: skin
- Carotid artery disease and treatment
- Chemotherapy
- Child abuse and neglect
- Chromosomal abnormalities
- Chronic fatigue syndrome
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD): chronic bronchitis and emphysema
- Cleft lip and palate
- Cold, common
- Complementary medicine
- Contraception
- Coronary heart disease: impact
- Coronary heart disease: cardiac psychology
- Coronary heart disease: heart failure
- Coronary heart disease: rehabilitation
- Coronary heart disease: surgery
- Cystic fibrosis
- Acquired hearing loss
- Dementias
- Diabetes mellitus
- Domestic violence, intimate partner violence and wife battering
- Drug dependency: benzodiazepines
- Drug dependence: opiates and stimulants
- Drugs: beta-blockers
- Drugs: psychotropic medication
- Dyslexia
- Eating disorders
- Eczema
- Endocrine disorders
- Enuresis
- Epilepsy
- Epstein–Barr virus infection
- Facial disfigurement and dysmorphology
- Fetal wellbeing: monitoring and assessment
- Gastric and duodenal ulcers
- Growth retardation
- Haemophilia
- Head injury
- Headache and migraine
- Herpes
- HIV/AIDS
- Hormone replacement therapy
- Hospital acquired infection
- Huntington's disease
- Hyperactivity
- Hypertension
- Hyperthyroidism
- Hyperventilation
- Hysterectomy
- Immunization
- Incontinence
- Infertility
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- Intensive care unit
- Intimate examinations
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Lymphoedema
- Malaria
- Mastalgia (breast pain)
- Meningitis
- Menopause and postmenopause
- MMR vaccine
- Motor neurone disease
- Multiple sclerosis
- Myasthenia gravis
- Neurofibromatosis
- Non-cardiac chest pain
- Obesity
- Oral care and hygiene
- Osteoarthritis
- Osteoporosis
- Parkinson's disease
- Pelvic pain
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Postnatal depression
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Premature babies
- Premenstrual syndrome
- Psoriasis
- Radiotherapy
- Rape and sexual assault
- Reconstructive and cosmetic surgery
- Renal failure, dialysis and transplantation
- Repetitive strain injury
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Road traffic accidents: human factors
- Screening: antenatal
- Screening: cancer
- Screening: cardiac
- Screening: genetic
- Self-examination: breasts, testicles
- Sexual dysfunction
- Sexually transmitted infections
- Sickle cell disease
- Skin disorders
- Sleep apnoea
- Sleep disorders
- Spina bifida
- Spinal cord injury
- Sterilization and vasectomy
- Stroke
- Stuttering
- Suicide
- Tinnitus
- Tobacco use
- Toxins: environmental
- Transplantation
- Urinary tract symptoms
- Vertigo and dizziness
- Vision disorders
- Voice disorders
- Volatile substance abuse
- Vomiting and nausea
- Index
- References
Radiotherapy
from Medical topics
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 18 December 2014
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Preface
- Psychology, health and illness
- Medical topics
- Abortion
- Accidents and unintentional injuries
- Acne
- Alcohol abuse
- Allergies to drugs
- Allergies to food
- Allergies: general
- Amnesia
- Amputation and phantom limb pain
- Anaesthesia and psychology
- Antenatal care
- Aphasia recovery, treatment and psychosocial adjustment
- Asthma
- Back pain
- Blindness and visual disability
- Blood donation
- Breastfeeding
- Burn injuries: psychological and social aspects
- Cancer: breast
- Cancers of the digestive tract
- Cancer: general
- Cancer: gynaecologic
- Cancer: head and neck
- Cancer: Hodgkin's and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
- Cancer: leukaemia
- Cancer: lung
- Cancer: prostate
- Cancer: skin
- Carotid artery disease and treatment
- Chemotherapy
- Child abuse and neglect
- Chromosomal abnormalities
- Chronic fatigue syndrome
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD): chronic bronchitis and emphysema
- Cleft lip and palate
- Cold, common
- Complementary medicine
- Contraception
- Coronary heart disease: impact
- Coronary heart disease: cardiac psychology
- Coronary heart disease: heart failure
- Coronary heart disease: rehabilitation
- Coronary heart disease: surgery
- Cystic fibrosis
- Acquired hearing loss
- Dementias
- Diabetes mellitus
- Domestic violence, intimate partner violence and wife battering
- Drug dependency: benzodiazepines
- Drug dependence: opiates and stimulants
- Drugs: beta-blockers
- Drugs: psychotropic medication
- Dyslexia
- Eating disorders
- Eczema
- Endocrine disorders
- Enuresis
- Epilepsy
- Epstein–Barr virus infection
- Facial disfigurement and dysmorphology
- Fetal wellbeing: monitoring and assessment
- Gastric and duodenal ulcers
- Growth retardation
- Haemophilia
- Head injury
- Headache and migraine
- Herpes
- HIV/AIDS
- Hormone replacement therapy
- Hospital acquired infection
- Huntington's disease
- Hyperactivity
- Hypertension
- Hyperthyroidism
- Hyperventilation
- Hysterectomy
- Immunization
- Incontinence
- Infertility
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- Intensive care unit
- Intimate examinations
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Lymphoedema
- Malaria
- Mastalgia (breast pain)
- Meningitis
- Menopause and postmenopause
- MMR vaccine
- Motor neurone disease
- Multiple sclerosis
- Myasthenia gravis
- Neurofibromatosis
- Non-cardiac chest pain
- Obesity
- Oral care and hygiene
- Osteoarthritis
- Osteoporosis
- Parkinson's disease
- Pelvic pain
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Postnatal depression
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Premature babies
- Premenstrual syndrome
- Psoriasis
- Radiotherapy
- Rape and sexual assault
- Reconstructive and cosmetic surgery
- Renal failure, dialysis and transplantation
- Repetitive strain injury
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Road traffic accidents: human factors
- Screening: antenatal
- Screening: cancer
- Screening: cardiac
- Screening: genetic
- Self-examination: breasts, testicles
- Sexual dysfunction
- Sexually transmitted infections
- Sickle cell disease
- Skin disorders
- Sleep apnoea
- Sleep disorders
- Spina bifida
- Spinal cord injury
- Sterilization and vasectomy
- Stroke
- Stuttering
- Suicide
- Tinnitus
- Tobacco use
- Toxins: environmental
- Transplantation
- Urinary tract symptoms
- Vertigo and dizziness
- Vision disorders
- Voice disorders
- Volatile substance abuse
- Vomiting and nausea
- Index
- References
Summary
Radiotherapy is a common treatment modality for cancer with over 50% of individuals receiving radiation at some time during the course of their disease. Despite the extent of its use and the length of time it has been available our knowledge is limited in how it affects individuals not only physically but also emotionally and socially. Radiotherapy can cause problems through side effects of treatment. These can be temporary symptoms (acute effects) that occur during or in the months following treatment, but also longer lasting effects (late effects) that can develop many months to years following radiotherapy. Much of the knowledge that exists as to how people react or cope with radiation treatment is focused on the physical effects and much less on the psychological responses. However radiation reactions can often exacerbate existing functional or emotional difficulties that can be as a result of the disease, age or a combination of therapies. This chapter explores the incidence and specific psychological problems identified as a result of radiotherapy treatment for cancer. The evidence is reviewed for psychosocial interventions for those undergoing or completing radiotherapy.
The need to include information representing patients' views of their condition has become more important as survival from cancer has gradually increased. Evaluations of treatment modalities have psychological and social consequences. Clearly, with cancer treatment, a person's physical health status contributes much to the psychological impact of a treatment modality.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Cambridge Handbook of Psychology, Health and Medicine , pp. 836 - 839Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2007