Radiation therapy for skin tumors.

Radiation therapy is an acceptable alternative for the treatment of many malignancies of the skin. Results are gratifying, and long-term sequelae are few. In basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas, radiation is often the best treatment when surgery is expected to cause excessive morbidity or mortality or require extensive reconstruction. Radiation should be considered as first-line treatment for tumors in the midfacial triangle. It is also very acceptable treatment for Kaposi's sarcoma and mycosis fungoides. Radiation can be used for melanoma, although it is not standard first-line therapy. Radiation is probably the treatment of choice for Merkel cell carcinoma.