Alternate Name Item# Length Source of Standard Column #
Radiation (SEER/CoC)
Radiation Therapy (pre-96 CoC)
1360 1 SEER 1580-1580

Description
Codes for the type of radiation therapy performed as part of the first course of treatment.

Codes
0 None
1 Beam radiation
2 Radioactive implants
3 Radioisotopes
4 Combination of 1 with 2 or 3
5 Radiation, NOS-method or source not specified
6 Currently allowable for historic cases only; see note below
7 Patient or patient's guardian refused*
8 Radiation recommended, unknown if administered*
9 Unknown if radiation administered

*Note: Radiation to brain and central nervous system for leukemia and lung cases is coded as radiation in this field.

CoC discontinued collection of this item in 2003 when FORDS was implemented. For CoC, codes 7 and 8 were used for tumors diagnosed before 1996, but should have been converted to 0 in this field and to the appropriate code in the new field Reason for No Radiation [1430]. SEER continues to use codes 7 and 8 for all years. See Chapter V, Unresolved Issues, for further discussion.

In the SEER program, a code 2 for other radiation was used between 1973 and 1987. When the radiation codes were expanded to add codes '2' radioactive implants and '3' radioisotopes, all cases with a code '2' and diagnosed in 1973-1987 were converted to a code '6' radiation other than beam radiation.