Hello! I came on board as the Radiation Therapy SIG Co-Chair in 2016 after attending a great AOSW conference in Tampa. I was very excited to find a group of fellow oncology social workers who practiced in the radiation therapy field. For those of you who do not know, the Radiation Therapy SIG provides specialized networking, the opportunity to share specialized professional expertise, education for the oncology community and fosters support for those of us practicing in radiation therapy settings. A lot of this is done through online forums, annual meetings at the AOSW conference and by making connections with oncology social workers in the radiation therapy setting.

The Radiation Therapy SIG also offers the opportunity for OSWs not working in the radiation therapy setting to learn more about a cancer treatment that is often misunderstood. According to ASTRO, the American Society for Radiation Oncology, around 60 percent of cancer patients will receive radiation therapy at some point during the treatment of their illness. Thus, it is important for all oncology social workers to have an understanding of what radiation therapy is and the challenges it brings for social workers and patients.

Radiation therapy is used by oncologists to treat many different cancer diagnoses/sites. This treatment modality uses various forms of radiation to safely and effectively treat cancer and other diseases. “Radiation therapy works by damaging the genetic material within cancer cells. Once this happens, the cancer cells are not able to grow and spread. When these damaged cancer cells die, the body naturally removes them. Normal cells are also affected by radiation, but they are able to repair themselves in a way that cancer cells cannot” (ASTRO, 2018). Radiation can be delivered in multiple ways including brachytherapy, external beam therapy, stereotactic radiation therapy and systemic radiation therapy (such as radioactive drugs). More information on each modality can be found through www.rtanswers.org, an information site geared toward patients and their caregivers.

I hope you will attend the radiation therapy SIG meeting during the 2019 AOSW conference in Tucson. This will be a great opportunity to meet fellow oncology social workers and discuss new advances in our field. It will also be a forum for anyone not in radiation oncology who is looking for more information in this area.

The Radiation Therapy SIG is so glad to be a part of AOSW and work with such great oncology social workers! Please feel free to reach out if you would like to know more about the radiation side of oncology throughout the year!

Reference

ASTRO. (2018). What is Radiation Therapy. Retrieved from http://www.rtanswers.org/What-is-Radiation-Therapy.