Course Overview

Breast Cancer Journey Master-Class is a comprehensive, clinically oriented educational course designed to take participants through the complete breast cancer pathway — from the patient’s first clinical presentation and diagnostic assessment to treatment decision-making, radiotherapy preparation, target delineation, and the delivery of the first treatment fraction.

The course is built around one central concept:

A Radiation Therapist should not only know how to deliver radiotherapy, but should understand the clinical journey that brought the patient to the treatment couch.

Through a structured progression of anatomy, clinical assessment, imaging, pathology, staging, multidisciplinary decision-making, cancer management, radiotherapy referral, target volumes, organs at risk, and treatment delivery, participants develop a complete understanding of the breast cancer treatment pathway.

The course combines oncology knowledge with practical radiotherapy application, helping participants connect what they see in the patient’s medical record with what they need to understand and perform in the radiotherapy department.

Course Rationale

Breast cancer management involves multiple stages and multiple specialties.

However, Radiation Therapists may encounter patients primarily at the final stages of a long clinical journey. Without understanding the preceding steps, important clinical information can appear as isolated facts rather than meaningful information that influences treatment.

This course was developed to bridge that gap.

Participants will learn how to follow the patient’s story:

Anatomy → Clinical Assessment → Diagnosis → Imaging & Biopsy → Cancer Characterization → Staging → MDT → Cancer Management → Radiotherapy Referral → Target Volumes & OARs → First Fraction → Follow-Up

The objective is to transform the participant’s perspective from simply asking:

“How do I treat this patient?”

to asking:

“Who is this patient, what happened before they reached me, why was this treatment chosen, and how does that affect what I do?”

Learning Objectives

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

Anatomy & Surgical Landmarks

• Describe the relevant anatomy of the breast and surrounding structures.
• Understand breast lymphatic drainage and its clinical relevance.
• Identify important surgical landmarks relevant to radiotherapy.

Clinical Assessment & Diagnosis

• Recognize important clinical signs and symptoms of breast cancer.
• Understand the initial clinical assessment of a suspicious breast lesion.
• Describe the diagnostic pathway from clinical suspicion to confirmed diagnosis.

Imaging & Biopsy

• Understand the principles of triple assessment.
• Recognize the roles of mammography, ultrasound, MRI, and other imaging modalities.
• Understand the role of biopsy in establishing tissue diagnosis.
• Interpret the clinical significance of imaging and biopsy findings.

Cancer Characterization

• Understand basic breast cancer histopathology.
• Interpret Nottingham grading.
• Understand ER, PR, HER2, and Ki-67.
• Recognize major molecular subtypes of breast cancer.
• Understand the principles of TNM staging.

MDT & Cancer Management

• Understand the role of the multidisciplinary team in breast cancer management.
• Understand how clinical, pathological, and imaging information contributes to treatment decisions.
• Recognize the major treatment modalities used throughout the breast cancer pathway.
• Understand the relationship between surgery, systemic treatment, and radiotherapy.

Radiotherapy

• Understand the rationale for radiotherapy referral.
• Recognize the clinical information required before radiotherapy.
• Understand the transition from cancer management to radiotherapy preparation.

Target Volumes & OAR

• Understand the principles of GTV, CTV, and PTV.
• Understand the concept of organs at risk.
• Recognize the relationship between anatomy, disease extent, surgical changes, and target delineation.
• Understand the terminology used in precision contouring.

First Fraction

• Understand the workflow of the first treatment day.
• Recognize the importance of patient identification, positioning, verification, and setup.
• Understand the role of image guidance before treatment delivery.
• Appreciate the importance of patient communication and safety during the first fraction.

Beyond the First Fraction

• Understand what happens after the patient’s first radiotherapy session.
• Recognize the importance of treatment continuity and patient monitoring.
• Understand the Radiation Therapist’s role throughout the patient’s ongoing radiotherapy journey.

Target Audience

The course is particularly suitable for:

• Radiation Therapists
• Radiation Therapy Technologists
• Radiographers working in oncology
• Radiation Therapy Students
• Oncology Residents and Junior Oncology Professionals
• Healthcare professionals interested in breast cancer management and radiotherapy