Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsWhat Is It?Who Should Get a Radiation Boost?How a Radiation Boost Is GivenEffectivenessSide Effects
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
What Is It?
Who Should Get a Radiation Boost?
How a Radiation Boost Is Given
Effectiveness
Side Effects
A radiation boost for breast cancer is an extra dose of radiation given after the regular course of radiation is over. It’s administered to the spot where a tumor was removed to lower the chances that cancer will come back.
A radiation boost, also known as a radiotherapy boost, is not recommended for everybreast cancerpatient. If you have a high risk for recurrence following amastectomyor alumpectomy, your doctor may recommend the treatment because the benefits outweigh the risks of additional radiation exposure.
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What Is a Radiation Boost?
Radiation boosts are sometimes used in treating several types of cancer, such as cervical, brain, or rectal cancer.They also may be a part ofbreast cancer treatment.
The radiation boost may be given afterradiation for breast canceris complete.
While the bulk of radiation therapy focuses on the whole breast, a boost targets just the area of tissue where the primary tumor was located. This is because when breast cancer recurs it is more likely to come back near the site of the original tumor.
This extra dose of radiation aims to destroy any remaining cancer cells after a tumor is removed, making it less likely that there are cancer cells left behind that can reproduce and form new tumors.
However, radiation boosts aren’t always a part of breast cancer treatment. Whether or not a booster dose is needed will depend on factors that include your age and the type and stage of breast cancer for which you’ve been treated.
A radiation boost is not necessary for every person who receives radiation therapy for breast cancer.
Healthcare providers may recommend a radiation boost to people with high-risk factors for recurrence, which include:
The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) recommends a booster dose for those who meet these specific criteria with the primary risk factor considered the proximity of cancer cells to the margins, or borders, of healthy tissue.
A radiation boost includes one or more extra treatments targeted at the tumor bed, which is a small area of breast tissue where the original cancer was removed. Surgeons usually mark this area with surgical clips (made out of titanium) that remain in the body to deliver the boost to this critical area.
This targeted boost is administered using the same machine as the one used for regular treatments, but using lower amounts of radiation.
The common recommendation is to administer boost radiation every weekday for between four and eight days.
This boost follows a standard three-to-five-week whole breast irradiation treatment session. To reduce the strain placed on your body from the radiation, researchers support minimizing the amount of treatment when possible.
The boost radiation dose will vary based on age, your previous treatment, specific treatment guidelines, and other factors.
A radiation boost can reduce the risk of local recurrence, especially for higher-risk individuals.The benefits are less for people who have positive margins of less than 2 millimeters
However, a radiation boost does not appear to affect overall survival for people who have had breast tumors removed.
For people who have undergone a mastectomy, the removal of all the breast tissue, a radiation boost reduces localchest wall recurrenceof breast cancer, but, again, this hasn’t been found to translate into longer survival.
Radiation Boost and Post-Mastectomy ReconstructionA radiation boost after mastectomy does appear to impact the success of reconstruction. Those who have a boost are more likely to experience complications following reconstructive surgery.
Radiation Boost and Post-Mastectomy Reconstruction
A radiation boost after mastectomy does appear to impact the success of reconstruction. Those who have a boost are more likely to experience complications following reconstructive surgery.
A radiation boost is associated with similarradiation side effectsthat occur with standard radiation therapy. There include short-term and long-term side effects.
Short-term side effects can include:
Higher doses of total radiation due to the boost have been associated with a worse cosmetic outcome. Talk with your treatment team about the total radiation amount that has already been given and what the dose would be for the boost.
Long-term side effects can include:
Summary
After radiation therapy is completed, sometimes an extra dose, or a boost, is recommended. This recommendation is based on guidelines developed based on age, margin status, and cancer grade.
Studies have shown that a radiation boost reduces breast cancer recurrence, especially for people with a DCIS diagnosis before age 50. But the boost hasn’t proven to increase long-term survival. There are risks involved, so talk with your healthcare team about the benefits versus the risks, and what an added dose may mean for you.
9 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
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National Cancer Institute. Shorter Course of Radiation Is Effective,Safe for Some with Early-Stage Breast Cancer.
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Vrieling C, van Werkhoven E, Maingon P, et al.Prognostic factors for local control in breast cancer after long-term follow-up in the EORTC boost vs no boost trial: a randomized clinical trial.JAMA Oncol. 2017;3(1):42-48. doi:10.1001/jamaoncol.2016.3031
Naoum GE, Salama L, Ho A, et al.The impact of chest wall boost on reconstruction complications and local control in patients treated for breast cancer.Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2019;105(1):155-164. doi:10.1016/j.ijrobp.2019.04.027
Kindts I, Laenen A, Depuydt T, Weltens C.Tumour bed boost radiotherapy for women after breast-conserving surgery.Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2017;11:CD011987. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD011987.pub2
Bartelink H, Maingon P, Poortmans P, et al.Whole-breast irradiation with or without a boost for patients treated with breast-conserving surgery for early breast cancer: 20-year follow-up of a randomized phase 3 trial.Lancet Oncol.2015;16(1):47-56. doi:10.1016/S1470-2045(14)71156-8Franco P, Cante D, Sciacero P, et al.Tumor bed boost integration during whole breast radiotherapy: a review of the current evidence.Breast Care.2015;10(1):44-9. doi:10.1159/000369845
Bartelink H, Maingon P, Poortmans P, et al.Whole-breast irradiation with or without a boost for patients treated with breast-conserving surgery for early breast cancer: 20-year follow-up of a randomized phase 3 trial.Lancet Oncol.2015;16(1):47-56. doi:10.1016/S1470-2045(14)71156-8
Franco P, Cante D, Sciacero P, et al.Tumor bed boost integration during whole breast radiotherapy: a review of the current evidence.Breast Care.2015;10(1):44-9. doi:10.1159/000369845
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