Evolving Role of Radiation Therapy for Hematologic Malignancies

Hematologic malignancies are cancers of the blood, bone marrow, or lymph nodes including leukemias, lymphomas (non-Hodgkin's lymphoma), Hodgkin's disease (also called Hodgkin's lymphoma), and myeloma. New cases of leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma account for nine percent of cancer cases diagnosed in the United States, and these diseases kill about 59,200 persons each year. Extensive research over the past many years has led to an explosion of new therapies resulting in improvement in outcomes. This article discusses the evolving role of radiation therapy for these diseases.