What Are the Bad Effects of Radiation?

Radiation therapy is used to stop the growth of cancer cells. High-energy beams are aimed at the location where the cancer is found and it serves to disrupt the DNA in the cells, which stops them from reproducing. Unlike normal cells in the body, cancer cells do not have the capacity to heal themselves. Unfortunately, many healthy cells get radiated by the treatments and this can cause problems.

Skin

• Since the radiation beams must penetrate the top layers of skin, the area treated often presents as a bad sunburn. It can cause itching, peeling and burning sensations in patches where the treatment was aimed. Since radiation therapy is most often used to treat breast cancer following surgery to make sure it gets all the cancer cells, the skin around the breast can become even more irritated by undergarments and arm movement.

Pain

• Since the nerves are just beginning to get their feeling back after surgery, they are particularly sensitive and may react to the radiation by causing chest pains. Tissues often are stretched when implants have been put in place following a mastectomy and the swollen, damaged nerves can react negatively to the radiation.

Fatigue

• Fatigue, or lack of energy for prolonged periods of time, is the most common side effect of radiation therapy. The fatigue is not remedied by rest, but instead can linger for months after the radiation therapy is completed. Those affected by fatigue will want to sleep more and are not usually interested in normal activities. They can have trouble concentrating and putting together complete sentences. Prolonged symptoms of fatigue must be treated because they can lead to other complications such as depression and weight gain.

Heart

• Radiation can cause heart problems that show up as rapid and irregular heart beats. Other symptoms of heart problems following radiation include trouble breathing, severe chest pains, coughing attacks and foot swelling. Other physical attributes that contribute to heart problems after radiation are obesity, smoking and stress.

Blood Count

• Radiation therapy can lower the white blood count, making patients more susceptible to infections. Infections can occur at the site where the radiation was targeted, causing the already swollen spots to become red and hot. High fever, chills, diarrhea and shortness of breath also can signify that an infection is present.

Lungs

• Radiation can damage the lungs and affect breathing. Lung problems can be detected by a dry cough or shortness of breath. Blood clots sometimes form in the lungs during the therapy. Pain in the legs is the most common symptom associated with blood clots and should be treated immediately to prevent the clots from cutting loose and going to the brain or heart.