Radiation Therapy for Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

Radiation therapy is treatment with high-energy rays or particles to destroy cancer cells. It's not usually the main treatment for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), but there are times when it might be helpful.

When is radiation therapy used for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL)?

Radiation therapy is seldom part of the main treatment for people with CLL, but it may be used in certain situations.

• It can be used to treat symptoms caused by swollen organs (like an enlarged spleen) pressing on other organs. For instance, pressure against the stomach may make it hard to eat. If these symptoms are not improved with other treatments like targeted drugs or chemotherapy, radiation therapy may help shrink the organ.
• It can be useful in treating pain from bone damage caused by leukemia cells growing in the bone marrow.
• It is sometimes given to the whole body (known as total body irradiation, or TBI), to help destroy the cells in the bone marrow (including leukemia cells) before a stem cell transplant.

The number of treatments you will have depends on why the radiation is being given.

How is radiation therapy given for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL)?

External beam radiation therapy, in which a machine sends a beam of radiation to a specific part of the body, is the type of radiation used most often for CLL.

Before your treatment starts, the treatment team will take careful measurements to determine the correct angles for aiming the radiation beams and the proper dose of radiation. Getting radiation therapy is a lot like getting an x-ray, but the radiation is more intense (stronger). The procedure itself is painless. Each treatment lasts only a few minutes, but the setup time − getting you into place for treatment − usually takes longer.

Side effects of radiation therapy

The side effects of radiation therapy depend on where in the body the radiation is aimed. They can include:

• Skin changes in the treated area, which can vary from mild redness to what looks and feels like a burn
• Fatigue (feeling very tired)
• Low blood cell counts, increasing the risk of infection and bleeding (if radiation is given to the whole body)
• Nausea and vomiting (more common with radiation to the belly)
• Diarrhea (more common with radiation to the belly)

Ask your treatment team what side effects you should look out for and what you can do about them.