Brachytherapy News and Research

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Brachytherapy is a minimally invasive procedure that involves the use of radioactive seeds the size of rice grains. Brachytherapy, an out-patient procedure, usually takes 45 minutes to an hour to perform. Most patients can return to their normal activities within days. The success rates of prostate brachytherapy have compared favorably with success rates of radical prostatectomy and external beam radiation. In comparison studies, prostate brachytherapy has shown to have a favorable side effect profile when compared with other modalities. Clinical studies have shown that prostate brachytherapy has a cure rate of 94% for appropriately selected patients.

New method combines injectable radioactive gel with systemic chemotherapy to treat pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest types of cancer-;in the U.S., it is estimated that over 88 percent of people will die from the disease within five years of their diagnosis.

20 Dec 2022

New ASTRO guideline provides recommendations on the use of radiation therapy for endometrial cancer

A newly updated clinical guideline from the American Society for Radiation Oncology provides recommendations on the use of radiation therapy and systemic therapy after surgery to treat patients with endometrial cancer.

7 Dec 2022

Sexual side effects of cancer treatment discussed less frequently with female patients

A new study finds that sexual side effects of cancer treatment are discussed far less frequently with female patients than with male patients, even when the treatment directly affects sex organs.

24 Oct 2022

Duke biomedical engineers develop a two-pronged approach to treating pancreatic cancer

Biomedical engineers at Duke University have demonstrated the most effective treatment for pancreatic cancer ever recorded in mouse models.

21 Oct 2022

Research pits the simulation of beta radiation in cancer treatment against analytical method

A new paper published in EPJ Plus and authored by Eduardo De Paiva, from the Division of Medical Physics at the Institute of Radiation Protection and Dosimetry, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, pits the gold standard simulation method used to calculate the interaction of the ionizing radiation with matter and estimate the radiation dose delivered to a target organ—Monte Carlo (MC) simulation — against an alternative analytic method, the Loevinger formula.

20 Sep 2022

New radiation therapy option may extend lifespan, improve quality of life for certain brain cancer patients

UC San Diego Health is the first hospital system in San Diego to offer a new, highly targeted and precisely placed radiation therapy that delays tumor regrowth while protecting healthy tissue in patients with brain cancer.

19 Sep 2022

Study finds the optimal duration of treatments for patients with high-risk prostate cancer

Patients receiving radiotherapy to treat high-risk prostate cancer also benefit from androgen deprivation therapy.

25 Feb 2022

Photobiomodulation may accelerate the healing of skin damage from radiation therapy

Light therapy may accelerate the healing of skin damage from radiation therapy by up to 50%, according to a recent University at Buffalo-led study.

27 Jan 2022

Study findings could help guide treatment planning for men with high-risk prostate cancer

Results of a large study led by UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers could help guide treatment planning for patients with high-risk prostate cancer.

20 Jan 2022

New system for targeted cancer radiation therapy using gold nanoparticles

Scientists from the Department of Nuclear Medicine and Tracer Kinetics at Osaka University developed a novel system for targeted cancer radiation therapy that uses gold nanoparticles labeled with astatine-211.

19 Oct 2021

Multimodality therapy critical for treating more aggressive prostate cancers

Men with high-risk prostate cancer with at least one additional aggressive feature have the best outcomes when treated with multiple healthcare disciplines, known as multimodality care, according to a UCLA study led by Dr. Amar Kishan, assistant professor of radiation oncology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and a researcher at the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center.

1 Jul 2021

Brachytherapy may proceed safely in cervical cancer patients following uterine perforation

A new study finds that brachytherapy, a common procedure that delivers radiation directly to cancer cells, may continue safely, potentially without delay or antibiotics, in cervical cancer patients following uterine perforation.

13 Apr 2021

Study: Radioactive bone cement is a safer alternative for treating bone tumors

A radioactive bone cement that's injected into bone to provide support and local irradiation is proving to be a safer alternative to conventional radiation therapy for bone tumors, according to a study led by University of California, Irvine researchers.

16 Feb 2021

Targeting senescent 'zombie' cells may improve survival in women with cervical cancer

How well women with cervical cancer respond to treatment and survive correlates with the level of 10 proteins in their blood that also are associated with a "zombie" cell state called senescence, Medical College of Georgia scientists report.

7 Dec 2020

Innovative radiotherapy technique benefits patients with locally advanced cervical cancer

Patients with locally advanced cervical cancer benefit significantly from an innovative radiotherapy technique co-developed by MedUni Vienna under the direction of Richard Pötter and Christian Kirisits. The technique provides better tumor control and produces fewer side-effects.

26 Nov 2020

Medical mistrust can make African Americans to regret their choice of treatment for prostate cancer

Medical mistrust is one reason why African American patients are more likely to have regrets about their choice of treatment for prostate cancer.

25 Nov 2020

Researchers report outcomes of salvage low dose RT brachytherapy after EBRT for prostate cancer

Researchers involved in the phase II NRG Oncology RTOG 0526 trial studying low dose rate (LDR) prostate brachytherapy (BT) following local recurrence (LR) after external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) for patients with low-to-intermediate risk prostate cancer reported late Grade 3 gastrointestinal and genitourinary adverse events (AEs) occurring in 14% of trial participants.

28 Oct 2020

Combination of antibodies and internal radiation can help fight cervical cancer

The sugar coating on cancer cells helps them thrive, and a new study indicates patients with cervical cancer who make antibodies to those sugars appear to do better when they also receive internal radiation therapy.

16 Jun 2020

ASTRO's new guideline provides recommendations for radiation therapy to treat cervical cancer

A new clinical guideline from the American Society for Radiation Oncology provides recommendations for radiation therapy to treat patients with nonmetastatic cervical cancer.

10 Jun 2020

Study evaluates the impact of prostate cancer treatment decisions

A five-year follow-up study of more than 2,000 U.S. men who received prostate cancer treatment is creating a road map for future patients regarding long-term bowel, bladder and sexual function in order to clarify expectations and enable men to make informed choices about care.

27 Jan 2020