CONFORMAL AND INTENSITY-MODULATED RADIOTHERAPY—WHY AND HOW? Scientific rationale Whilst drug development plays an important but expensive role in the treatment of some cancers, it is estimated that, at a time when 2% of patients are cured by drugs, some 30% are cured by a combination of surgery and radiotherapy. Radiotherapy may be the ‘sticking plaster of cancer’ but it is likely to be necessary for many decades to come and it merits continual development. The development of 3D conformal radiotherapy (CFRT), in which the high-dose volume matches the target volume and avoids normal tissues, has been a major theme for improving the physical basis of radiotherapy. Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) is.
