VIDEO | 3:00
One of the most important advances in radiation oncology in the past decade is the development of image guided radiation therapy or IGRT, says Memorial Sloan Kettering radiation oncologist Josh Yamada, MD. This highly sophisticated technique enables radiation oncologists to precisely sculpt multiple radiation beams to the contours of a tumor, thereby sparing nearby normal tissue. The higher doses possible in IGRT also have a greater chance of killing tumors, according to Dr. Yamada.