Imaging of the Chest After Radiotherapy and Potential Pitfalls.

Radiotherapy is one of the cornerstones for the treatment of thoracic malignancies. The goal of radiotherapy is to deliver maximal dose to the tumor while minimizing damage to surrounding normal anatomical structures. Although advances in radiotherapy technology have considerably improved radiation delivery, potential adverse effects are still common. Post radiation changes to the chest may include different structures such as the lung, heart, great vessels, and esophagus. The purpose of this manuscript is to illustrate the post radiotherapy changes to these anatomical structures resulting from external beam radiotherapy, as well as discuss imaging pitfalls to prevent radiologist's interpretation errors.