The first-in-human trial of FLASH radiotherapy found the experimental treatment to be safe and effective — suggesting that there may be a faster, less painful way to use radiation against cancer.
The status quo: Radiation therapy is a common cancer treatment that uses high doses of radiation to kill or slow the growth of cancer cells. Usually, this is done by aiming a beam of radiation directly at a tumor for a few minutes. This part of the process is painless, like getting an X-ray.
Patients typically undergo daily treatments five days a week for several weeks, and including setup time, a treatment usually takes about 15 to 30 minutes.
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