Surgery, Radiation, and Local Therapies
Educational orientation
Source-checked: 2026-06-05. This page explains categories; it is not procedural or treatment advice.
Core Idea
Local therapies focus on a defined body area. Surgery removes tissue. Radiation uses energy to damage cancer cells in a planned region. Ablation and other image-guided procedures can destroy selected tissue in specific settings. Local therapy may have definitive, symptom-directed, diagnostic, or combined intent.
Local does not mean simple. The same modality can have different goals depending on stage, anatomy, margins, dose, timing, and combination with systemic therapy.
Essential Vocabulary
- Resection: surgical removal.
- Margin: edge of removed tissue.
- Fractionation: radiation dose divided over sessions.
- Ablation: destruction of tissue by heat, cold, or other energy.
What This Does Not Mean
Whether local therapy is appropriate cannot be inferred from modality alone.
Builder/Data Lens
Capture anatomy, laterality, dose, margin status, target volume, dates, and intent. Missing intent makes outcome analysis fragile.
Go Deeper
References
- National Cancer Institute. Surgery for Cancer
- National Cancer Institute. Radiation Therapy for Cancer