Side Effects After Prostate Radiation

Early and late side effects may include.

Side effects after prostate radiation. Because the prostate is close to several vital structures radiation therapy can disrupt normal urinary bowel and sexual functioning. The type and severity of side effects you have with external beam radiation for prostate cancer may depend on the dose and on the amount of healthy tissue that s exposed to the radiation. Below is a list of possible short term side effects. There is also the risk of long term permanent worsening of urine control but this is not common.

Short term complications you may experience some temporary urinary symptoms such as waking up in the night and needing to urinate needing to urinate more often during the day or urgency needing to. Late side effects can happen months to years after you receive radiation therapy. Treatments can affect each. These short term side effects usually clear up within 1 2 months after completing radiation.

External beam radiation and. Late side effects of radiation therapy may be permanent. Doctors will often use external radiation therapy for prostate cancer patients who want to avoid the risks of surgery. Early side effects happen shortly after you receive radiation therapy.

During and after radiation treatment for prostate cancer there may be diarrhea and or rectal pain irritable bowels incontinence of feces and sometimes bloody stools 2 according to the acs this is more common with older forms of external beam radiation where the source of radiation is placed outside the body. Webmd explains the use of radiation therapy for prostate cancer including internal and external radiation therapy how radiation therapy is performed side effects risks and more. If you have been able to get erections since the surgery they may become further weakened by the radiation. They tend to occur after the treatment and lasts for few days to weeks.

To help you understand the safety of this procedure we shall look at both the short and long term side effects resulting from this treatment. Patients who receive any type of radiation therapy external beam or brachytherapy to treat their prostate cancer can have side effects. These radiation therapy side effects are mild and tolerable. Most side effects are temporary can be controlled and generally improve over time once treatment has ended.

Short term side effects. The side effects of radiation therapy depend on the area of the body that receives radiation. When it comes to prostate cancer there are two kinds of radiation treatment. Short term side effects are ones that start during or shortly after your radiation treatment.