I was asked """ how long will it be after my surgery that they start radiotherapy""".

My answer below might be of interest to others also waiting.
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It depends on your healing and health after the surgery - usually need about 2-4 weeks. It also depends on the supply of radiologists and the demand for the service.

From the NICE Head & Neck Cancer Guidelines, first consultation:

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"""In 1997, the median waiting times for patients with oral cancer were 40 days between GP referral and surgery, and 53 days to radiotherapy; very little of this time was taken in testing procedures. Delays had grown about a week longer three years later. The range of waiting times was large, with delays between first outpatient appointment and assessment at a Joint Head and Neck Clinic ranging from less than a week to more than 19 months (median 18 days). A similar pattern of waiting times can be seen for patients with cancer of the larynx, pharynx, and other sites. Median waiting times (for example, 47 days from GP referral to surgery and 85 days to radiotherapy for patients with larynx cancer in 2000) obscure the wide variation between patients. Some waited a year after their first outpatient appointment before radiotherapy began, though the maximum delay before surgery was less (82 days).

There is consistent evidence that minimising treatment time can be crucial to the success of radiotherapy for head and neck cancers. Awareness of the importance of overall treatment time has increased over recent decades and conventional radiotherapy schedules used in random controlled trials (RCTs) have been intensified by 4-5 Gy; this corresponds to an increase of over 10% in the probability of local tumour control. However, even in RCTs, compliance with the prescribed schedule can be relatively poor. For more than a quarter of patients included in major trials, the time taken to complete treatment exceeded that prescribed by more than five days. The most important cause of interrupted treatment was machine servicing � either planned or to deal with breakdown. In 14% of cases, treatment was interrupted because of adverse reactions to radiotherapy."""

Note: When ionizing radiation interacts with the human body, it gives its energy to the body tissues. The amount of energy absorbed per unit weight of the organ or tissue is called absorbed dose and is expressed in units of gray (Gy).

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Best wishes
Vinod :coffee:

BBC News, Monday, 7 June, 2004
Link: Cancer patients 'waiting longer'

Cancer patients are waiting longer for potentially life-saving treatment compared to six years ago, according to a survey. The Royal College of Radiologists carried out an audit of all radiotherapy centres in the UK. It found that patients now wait two weeks longer for treatment in three out of four NHS centres.
According to the survey, waiting times for radiotherapy have increased by two weeks in most cancer centres since 1998.

Breast cancer patients now wait an average of five weeks for this treatment. Other cancer patients can wait up to six weeks. The college said an increase in the number of patients being referred for treatment and a lack of machines were to blame.

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We are doing everything we can to rectify this as quickly as possible
Professor Mike Richards,
NHS Cancer Tsar

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