There are very few centers in the United States that offer this form of therapy. The delivery of radiation therapy to the entire skin surface of the body requires the use of electrons, a form of radiation that does not penetrate deeply into the body, and does not affect vital organs such as the bone marrow, lung, heart, intestinal tract or liver. The position of the patient is changed to expose different aspects of the surface of the body. Limited areas of the body that may have received a lower dose with this technique are given additional treatment. Adjustments to the dose may made depending upon the degree of skin reaction.
Patients receive treatment three times per week, for about three to four weeks.
Following the completion of the treatment patients develop a rather brisk erythema, redness of the skin, similar to having been exposed to the effects of sunlight. The reaction subsides in about two to three weeks after the end of the treatment. If the treatment is successful the symptoms of the disease disappear with time and patients may return to a relatively normal life, except that patients are advised to avoid excessive, direct sun exposure .