Radiation Damage to the Nervous System

Abstract

This book is greatly needed in the fields of oncology, neuro-oncology, and clinical neurology. Its first three chapters deal with delayed necrosis in the monkey brain, clinical features of irradiation injury of the human brain, and dosimetric considerations. Next are discussions of neurological and neuropathological perspectives of CNS radionecrosis, its treatment, and the use of imaging techniques in its diagnosis. Specific types of radiation damage are covered in chapters on radiation injury of the cranial and peripheral nerves and the hypothalamic pituitary regions. Spinal-cord injury and the relative radiation tolerance of brain and spinal cord are covered in two chapters. The last chapter is devoted to a comparison of myelopathy associated with megavoltage irradiation and remote cancers. Although rare, the consequences of radiation injury to the nervous system are serious. The book is of manageable length and provides a good discussion of nervous system radiation injury. The reader is given