What you can expect

Stereotactic body radiotherapy is most commonly delivered as an outpatient and takes between 20 to 60 minutes for each treatment. While not common, your doctor will advise you if a family member or friend will need to accompany you for the treatment.

Before the procedure

Preparation for stereotactic radiosurgery of the body involves several steps, including:

• Marking. Some technologies require the placement of a small metal marker (fiducial marker) in or near the tumor in certain cases. The fiducial marker is about the size of a grain of rice. The marker is usually in a cylinder, coil or sphere shape and is often made out of gold. The marking procedure is usually done as an outpatient procedure prior to SRS treatment. But this step is not needed for most CT-guided technologies.

• Simulation. A radiation oncologist will conduct a simulation. This step determines the best placement of your body to align it with the radiation beams. Your body will be held very tightly and still by an immobilization device. Tell your doctor if you have claustrophobia.

  After you are immobilized, imaging scans will be taken. Your doctor might perform a 4DCT to capture information about how your tumor moves when you are breathing. A 4DCT is most often used on tumors located in the liver or lungs. After the scans, you'll probably be sent home before the next stage. Sometimes, holding your breath for 10-30 seconds at a time during treatment may be required to reduce movement of the tumor.

• Planning. Using the imaging scans and specialized software, your treatment team will determine the best combination of radiation beams to target your tumor or other abnormality.

During the procedure

Children are often anesthetized for the imaging tests and during the radiosurgery. Adults are usually awake, but in rare instances, you might be given a mild sedative to help you relax if you're feeling very anxious.

The LINAC machine moves and rotates around the target during treatment to deliver radiation beams from different angles. The treatment takes less than 30 minutes to an hour.

Having SBRT is kind of like having an X-ray. During the procedure:

• You won't feel the radiation.
• You'll be able to talk with the doctors via a microphone.

After the procedure

After the procedure, you can expect the following:

• If you experience symptoms such as a temporary increase in pain or nausea you'll receive appropriate medications.
• You'll be able to eat and drink after the procedure.
• Usually, you'll go home the same day.
• You can usually get back to normal activities within one to two days.