Gender disparities in historical context, workforce structure, and decision-making

Radiation oncology plays a crucial role in modern cancer therapy, as about 50% of cancer patients receive radiotherapy (RT) [1].Ongoing technological advancements, improved treatment strategies and radiation techniques focus mostly on mechanical and anatomical precision.Furthermore, individualized treatment regimens in radiation oncology are designed to maximize tumor control while minimizing radiation exposure to surrounding normal tissues, thereby improving patient safety and reducing treatment-related toxicity [2].However, a fundamental but often overlooked aspect of both research and treatment planning is the consideration of gender-specific responses in radiation oncology.This, however, could become increasingly more important, as the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) reported that from 2000 to 2022 age-standardized cancer-incidents showed an increase of 10% in women and 2% in men [3].While sex-specific differences in the efficacy of pharmacological treatments, including chemotherapy, are well es-