Yes. IG-SRT can be used on virtually any external body site – legs, arms, chest, back, abdomen, etc. It’s effective wherever the skin cancer is located, as long as the lesion is of a type and size suitable for radiation. In fact, it can be especially useful in areas like the lower legs, where surgeries sometimes heal slowly (due to less robust blood circulation in the extremities). By avoiding a surgical wound on the shin or ankle, for example, IG-SRT can circumvent healing complications that occasionally occur in those areas. On the arms and trunk, IG-SRT works just as well as on the face; the main difference patients consider is cosmetic (trunk and limbs scars might be less of a concern, so some patients just choose surgery there, but others still prefer no scar). There’s no site on the body that is off-limits for technical reasons except maybe very tricky spots like between toes or under nails – but those locations are rare for these cancers. The key is that the skin cancer is not too deep and is in a location where we can position the machine’s applicator flat against the skin (for instance, we can treat an elbow or knee, but if it’s right on a very sharp curve, we just need to position carefully). IG-SRT has been successfully done on shoulders, forearms, hands (back of hands, not so much on fingers due to size constraints, but small lesions on fingers might be possible), and so on. So yes, from head to toe, IG-SRT is applicable for non-melanoma skin cancers, with the proper patient and tumor selection. Each body part might have small practical tweaks (shielding certain areas, for example treating a torso lesion might involve draping lead over the abdomen to protect internal organs – which we do), but those are routine. If you have multiple lesions scattered on body parts, IG-SRT can sometimes treat a few at once or sequentially. In summary, whether your skin cancer is on your leg, arm, or elsewhere, IG-SRT remains a valid option worth discussing with your dermatologist.
Category:
IG-SRT
