Radiation Therapy for Cutaneous Malignancies of the Head and Neck

Radiation therapy (RT) plays a significant role in the management of cutaneous cancers of the head and neck, which include basal cell carcinoma (BCC), cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), melanoma, and Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC). Commonly used RT modalities include kilovoltage photons, megavoltage electrons, megavoltage photons, and low-dose-rate and high-dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy. Kilovoltage (ie, low-energy) photons include orthovoltage, superficial, contact, and soft x-rays and deposit most dose superficially with little dose penetrating into deeper tissues, which is advantageous for superficial skin tumors. Megavoltage electrons penetrate more deeply but still show rapid dose decrease with increasing tissue depth. Megavoltage photons are suitable for larger, deeply invasive tumors. Brachytherapy involves the

Automated summary

Radiation therapy is crucial in managing cutaneous cancers of the head and neck, with different modalities being utilized for different types of skin tumors, such as kilovoltage photons for superficial skin tumors and megavoltage electrons for deeply invasive tumors.