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 “The radiation treatment of breast cancer is not only better than it was 10 years ago but also is of shorter duration in certain circumstances” reports Kathryn L. Kepes, MD. Because technology is changing, a woman now has a choice concerning her treatment after a lumpectomy. According to Dr. Kepes, “When a patient undergoes a lumpectomy or removal of all the cancer and some surrounding normal breast tissue, radiation therapy is necessary to decrease the chance of cancer reoccurring in the breast. The standard option for radiation therapy to the breast is external beam radiation, where the radiation is delivered to the entire breast from a linear accelerator.” In addition to this conventional treatment, which usually last six and one-half weeks, the physicians at the Center for Radiation Oncology offer two choices for delivering high-dose radiation to the lumpectomy site (the area in the breast where the cancer initially presented) in a short period of time: MammoSite balloon catheter and SAVI applicator breast brachytherapy devices. A surgeon places the MammoSite balloon catheter or SAVI applicator in the lumpectomy site either during the lumpectomy or at his/her office after the lumpectomy is performed. “The SAVI applicator has multiple catheters (looks like an egg beater) compared to one catheter in the MammoSite balloon,” notes Dr.Goytia. High-dose radiation is delivered through the catheters. Both procedures involve 10- to 15-minute treatments twice a day for five days, with the catheter or applicator removed at the completion of treatment. The entire breast is not treated – only the lumpectomy site and some surrounding normal breast tissue. Dr. Nagy Elsayyad states, “Breast brachytherapy has become an acceptable alternative to external beam radiation therapy in selected patients. If the patient is not a candidate for MammoSite, she may be a candidate for SAVI since we are able to conform the multiple catheters to a more irregular shaped lumpectomy site in addition to controlling the dose to the area.” Finally, to add to the state-of-the-art radiation options, in October 2008, the Center for Radiation Oncology prided itself in being the first in the state of Florida to use AccuBoost high dose radiation to treat breast cancer. AccuBoost is a noninvasive imaging and radiation delivery system, used during the boost phase of radiation therapy, which focuses radiation dose to the portion of the breast containing the highest doses of cancer cells: The lumpectomy site. Dr Kepes stated, “the AccuBoost design delivers a conformal high dose of radiation to the target tissue, sparing the remainder of the breast and underlying lung and heart from adverse radiation effects.” |
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