Radiation Deserts Grow as Rural Radiation Sites Are Lost, Threatening Access Megan Brooks

https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/radiation-deserts-grow-rural-radiation-sites-are-lost-2026a1000p5s More than two thirds of US counties — home to over 50 million people — lacked a radiation oncology practice site in 2025, according to a national analysis of Medicare data. The analysis also found that, between 2018 and 2025, freestanding (community-based) radiation oncology practice sites had higher odds of disappearing than hospital-affiliated sites, whereas practice sites in rural counties had higher odds of disappearing than those in urban counties.