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.

Long-term prostate cancer treatment study informs decisions for diverse groups

A 10-year follow up study of nearly 2,500 U.S. men who received prostate cancer treatment will help inform decision making in terms of treatments and side effects for a diverse population.

23 Jan 2024

New course of treatment with existing drugs for cervical cancer reduces risk of death by 35%

A course of treatment with existing drugs prior to chemoradiation led to a 35% reduction in the risk of death or return of cancer, in trial results presented by researchers from UCL and UCLH.

25 Oct 2023

Short course of induction chemotherapy can reduce cervical cancer relapse and death by 35%

The INTERLACE phase III trial, funded by Cancer Research UK and UCL Cancer Trials Centre, assessed whether a short course of induction chemotherapy (IC) prior to chemoradiation (CRT) could reduce the rate of relapse and death among patients with locally advanced cervical cancer.

22 Oct 2023

Elekta and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) partner to improve access to cancer care in underserved countries

Dr. Laurent Leksell, Elekta’s Founder and Chairman of the Board, and IAEA’s Director General, Dr. Rafael Mariano Grossi meet in Stockholm to discuss reducing the global cancer burden

From Elekta 8 Sep 2023

No improvement in freedom from progression rates for patients: Study

Results from the NRG Oncology NRG-RTOG 0232 clinical trial adding external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) to brachytherapy (BT) in men with intermediate-risk prostate cancer indicate that there was no improvement in freedom from progression (FFP) rates for patients.

16 Jun 2023

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