“How long can you live with palliative radiotherapy?”
My friend is getting palliative radiotherapy for bone cancer. How long can you live with palliative radiotherapy?
3 Answers
RadiologistRadiologist
Depending on the type of cancer, how many sites of metastasis, and whether patient still receives active cancer treatment or not.Survival can be from few months to few years or more. Patient with breast and prostate cancer with only bony metastasis on hormonal or chemotherapy can live for many years.
TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR, THERE ARE TOO MANY VARIABLES TO ANSWER SPECIFICALLY. EVERY SITUATION IS DIFFERENT. Radiation addresses a local issue and even cures some patients with bone cancer.
Depending on the type of cancer, time to metastases, burden of disease and other co-existing illnesses this can vary greatly. Patients with localized disease that is palliated can live for a long time if these factors are kept in check. Other factors include additional medication therapy such as hormones, chemotherapy, targeted molecular therapies and so forth.