Hemostatic Radiotherapy

It is radiotherapy treatment delivered with high dose per fraction to stop the bleeding from tumor site in combination with systemic measures like the use of blood products, vasopressin, vitamin K, somatostatin analogues and antifibrinolytic agents. 

What are the advantages?

Local radiation therapy is commonly used to treat bleeding from tumours for hemostasis. This treatment is non-surgical.

What are the sites?

• Bleeding from head and neck cancers who present with bleeding per oral like buccal mucosa, tomgue, oropharynx, larynx etc. It is also used to stop the bleeding from ulcerated, fungated and bleeding lymph nodes.
• Gynaecological cancers like cancer cervix who present with massive bleeding per vaginum. 
• Breast cancer who present with bleeding from fungating ulcerated mass
• Lung cancer who present with blood in sputum – hemoptysis
• GI cancers who may present with blood in vomiting (hemetemseis) or blood in stools (malena)
• Urinary Bladder cancer who may present with blood in urine (hematuria)