Management of Post Radiation Skin Ulcers

Abstract

adiation therapy is therapy using ionizing radiation, generally as part of cancer treatment to control or kill malignant cells. Radiation therapy may be curative in a number of types of cancer if they are localized to one area of the body. It may also be used as part of adjuvant therapy, to prevent tumor recurrence after surgery to remove a primary malignant tumor (for example, early stages of breast cancer) and as synergistic with chemotherapy. Most side effects from radiation are predictable and expected, they are divided into acute and late effects. They are usually limited to the area of the patient’s body that is under treatment and are dose- dependent. Modern radiation therapy aims to reduce side effects to a minimum and to help the patient understand and deal with side effects that are unavoidable. The term radiation injury refers to the morphological and functional changes that occur in non-cancerous tissue as a direct result of ionizing radiation. Radiation therapy causes significant side effects on skin. Pigmentary changes, erythema and epilation being the most common. Moist desquamation, Oral mucositis, xerosis and scalp alopecia are seen less often. Xerostomia, dry desquamation and ulceration are seen with further lower frequency. Atrophic changes like atrophy, fibrosis and telangiectasia are seen occasionally. Radiation-damaged tissue