Radiation dermatitis (also known as radiodermatitis) is a skin disease associated with prolonged exposure to ionizing radiation. Radiation dermatitis occurs to some degree in most patients receiving radiation therapy, with or without chemotherapy.
There are three specific types of radiodermatitis: acute radiodermatitis, chronic radiodermatitis, and eosinophilic, polymorphic, and pruritic eruption associated with radiotherapy. Radiation therapy can also cause radiation cancer.
With interventional fluoroscopy, because of the high skin doses that can be generated in the course of the intervention, some procedures have resulted in early (less than two months after exposure) and/or late (two months or more after exposure) skin reactions, including necrosis in some cases.
Radiation dermatitis, in the form of intense erythema and vesiculation of the skin, may be observed in radiation ports.
As many as 95% of patients treated with radiation therapy for cancer will experience a skin reaction. Some reactions are immediate, while others may be later (e.g., months after treatment).
Read more about Radiation Dermatitis: Beta Burns, Causes, See Also
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