Radiation Oncology

Dana-Farber/Children's Hospital Cancer Center

Having a child with cancer is overwhelming and scary. You are learning a lot about the type of cancer your child has, as well as all the types of treatment he may need. Dr.s reading xrays. Radiation Oncology Program

The Division of Radiation Oncology at Dana-Farber/Children's Hospital Cancer Center plays a significant role in childhood cancer care. Our pediatric radiation oncologists are specially trained to give your child safe, effective radiation treatments, during which high doses of radiation destroy or reduce the size of a tumor while sparing the healthy tissues and organs that surround it.

Radiation treatments may be done with or without other forms of treatment, such as surgery or chemotherapy.

Our expertise

At the Division of Radiation Oncology, within Dana-Farber/Children’s Hospital Cancer Center, your child will receive care from many of the world’s most experienced pediatric cancer doctors at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and internationally recognized pediatric subspecialists at Children's Hospital Boston.

Our radiation oncologists completed special training in pediatric oncology and radiation oncology and are entirely focused on delivering radiotherapy to young children and adolescents.
We use special machines called CT-simulators to map out your child’s treatment plan. This helps us target the radiation therapy to the tumor, minimizing exposure to healthy tissues and decreasing your child’s risk of developing side effects.
Our researchers are studying the side effects of radiotherapy on the vascular system in children.
We have access to all open proton beam protocols offered through the Northeast Proton Therapy Center.

Radiation therapy is the single most effective cancer-treating agent

Tumors are rarely resistant to radiation therapy. However, radiation therapy is limited because it also affects normal, healthy tissue. With better imaging, faster computers and improved radiation delivery systems, we can deliver more accurate radiation therapy that spares most healthy tissue.