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Nearly two-thirds of all cancer patients will receive radiation therapy during their illness. At UT Southwestern Harold C. Simmons Cancer Center, patients have access to some of the most advanced radiation treatment technologies available anywhere, designed to increase the safety and effectiveness of radiation treatment. 

As the only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center in North Texas, we deliver the best cancer care available today and push to discover new treatments. NCI designation means we offer patients the ability to participate in the broadest possible range of clinical trials, with access to potential therapies not available at other facilities. Read our most recent issue of The Target.

"Comprehensive cancer care increasingly means more personalized care. We’re committed to providing a unique treatment that is effective and makes sense."

Robert Timmerman, M.D., Professor and Chair

Specialty Care

We provide personalized treatment care plans based on multiple factors including overall health, age, and type of cancer. Our doctors and oncology-trained staff, which includes radiation physicists, radiation biologists, medical dosimetrists, radiation therapists, nurses, and support staff, are divided into specialized disease-oriented teams, so each team is especially trained in your specific cancer. 

Recognized globally as a leader in patient care, education, and research, our main priority is and always will be our patients – their outcomes, safety, and entire healing experience. Our facilities are accredited by the Joint Commission and the American College of Radiology – the gold standard for ensuring safety, quality, and patient care standards. 

We offer treatment for all types of cancer, including:

Radiation Therapy Overview

Radiation therapy uses high doses of radiation to destroy cancer cells and shrink tumors by damaging their DNA. If the cancer cell’s DNA is damaged beyond repair, it stops dividing and/or slowly starts dying. The cancer cells take days or weeks to die and will continue to do so after radiation treatment is over. 

Advanced Treatments

Our teams comprise leading experts in both external and internal radiation-beam therapies. Through state-of-the-art machines and computer targeting, each therapy delivers a high dose of radiation more precisely to a tumor, thereby sparing surrounding healthy tissue.

External-Beam (Focused) Radiation Therapy

  • Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS)
  • Stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SAbR)/stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT)
  • Volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT)
  • Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT)
  • Image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT)
  • RapidArc

Internal Radiation Therapy (Brachytherapy)

  • High-dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy 
  • Low-dose rate (LDR) brachytherapy 

Learn more about brachytherapy.

Featured Technology

We offer some of the most technologically advanced and powerful treatment equipment available—many of which are unique to North Texas and the U.S. The new GammaPod—one of only two in the world and the only one in Texas—is the first stereotactic radiotherapy system optimized for treating breast cancer. We also have the Gamma Knife Icon—the first in Texas—which is the gold standard for cancer patients with inoperable brain tumors or brain metastases. Learn more about other technology we offer.

GammaPod

GammaPod is the first SBRT system optimized for treating breast cancer. By using principles of stereotactic radiotherapy to deliver higher doses in one to five treatment fractions, GammaPod can both reduce treatment time and potentially lower the toxicity of treatment.

UT Southwestern is the first center in Texas and only the second center in the world to offer GammaPod as a treatment option.

Preserving sexual function after prostate cancer

It’s a side effect that weighs on 50 percent of men who battle prostate cancer – the loss of potency. Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center are embarking on a clinical trial that will put a new therapy to the test. It’s designed to preserve sexual function after prostate cancer.