"It's important to clarify that most patients will experience and at least some side effects—and often several. So prevention really means reducing severity, complications, and long-term impact rather than avoiding side effects altogether. This process starts before radiation begins and continues throughout the treatment and includes dental evaluation, baseline swallowing assessments, and thorough patient education," ONS member Astrid Amoresano, RN, OCN®, lead oncology nurse specialist at New York Proton Center in New York, NY, told Jaime Weimer, MSN, RN, AGCNS-BS, AOCNS®, manager of oncology nursing practice at ONS, during a conversation about side effects of radiation for head and neck cancer.

Music Credit: "Fireflies and Stardust" by Kevin MacLeod

Licensed under Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0

Earn 0.5 contact hours of nursing continuing professional development (NCPD) by listening to the full recording and completing an evaluation at courses.ons.org by February 13, 2027. The planners and faculty for this episode have no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose. ONS is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation.

Learning outcome: Learners will report an increase in knowledge related to radiation side effects in people with head and neck cancer.

Episode Notes

Complete this evaluation for free NCPD.
ONS Podcast™ episodes:

ONS Voice articles:

ONS book: Manual for Radiation Oncology Nursing Practice and Education (fifth edition)
ONS courses:

Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing articles:

ONS Radiation Learning Library
ONS Symptom Intervention Resources
ONCC: Radiation Oncology Certified Nurse (ROCN™)
American Cancer Society

CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians article: American Cancer Society Head and Neck Cancer Survivorship Care Guideline
Cancer Survivors Network: Head and neck cancer
Head and neck cancer resources
Radiation therapy resources

American Society of Radiation Oncology
National Cancer Institute: Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE)
National Comprehensive Cancer Network

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Episode 402: Radiation Site-Specific Side Effects: Head and Neck Cancer