Does brachytherapy make you give off radiation?

Yes. With brachytherapy, the radiation source placed in your body will give off radiation for a while.

If the radiation you receive is a very high dose, you may need to follow some safety measures. These can include staying in a private hospital room and having staff care for you quickly, sometimes from a distance or while wearing protective clothing. Visitors may need to keep visits short, stand by the doorway, and avoid bringing pregnant women or very young children.

With permanent implants, the source stays in your body, but the radiation gets weaker each day until almost all of it goes away. When it is first placed, you may need to limit close contact with others for a time.

After the catheter or applicator is removed in low-dose or high-dose rate treatment, there is no radiation left in your body. Your care team will explain exactly which safety steps apply to your treatment.