One-Time, One Dose Radiation Treatment Offered For Breast Cancer Patients At MedStar Georgetown University Hospital And MedStar Washington Hospital Center

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MedStar Georgetown University Hospital

Apr 10, 2013, 06:11 ET

For Some Patients INTRABEAM Could be a One-Shot Alternative to Six Weeks of Radiation after Lumpectomy

WASHINGTON, April 10, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- For the first time, breast cancer patients in the Washington, DC area have an opportunity to skip the traditional six weeks of radiation after breast cancer surgery and get just one dose in the operating room immediately after having their cancer removed. Making this possible is INTRABEAM Intraoperative Radiotherapy (IORT) a technology now being offered to patients at both MedStar Georgetown University Hospital and MedStar Washington Hospital Center.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130410/DC90549)

Mary Shanholtzer, 68, of Maryland had a one centimeter lump in her breast that was found by a mammogram. She had a lumpectomy in January 2013 with INTRABEAM IORT given right in the operating room while she was still asleep. Mary's lymph nodes were negative for cancer, making her a perfect candidate for INTRABEAM IORT. "What attracted me to the IORT is that it's a one shot deal," said Mary. "Six or seven weeks of radiation would have been burdensome for me and working full time, all that travel would have been a problem."

"We're offering INTRABEAM to a select group of lumpectomy patients based on their age, the size and type of tumor," said Shawna Willey, MD, director of the MedStar Regional Breast Health Program. "This is encouraging news for patients who now can wake up from breast surgery and know their radiation treatment is complete instead of facing six weeks of up to 30 radiation treatments."

Up until now, the standard treatment for those having a lumpectomy involved waiting four weeks after the initial surgery and then starting a five to six week whole-breast radiation regimen.

"INTRABEAM changes that," said Marc E. Boisvert, MD, FACS, breast surgeon and medical director of the Center for Breast Health at MedStar Washington Hospital Center. "Now, for a select group of women receiving a lumpectomy, the radiation they receive in the operating room is the only radiation treatment they'll ever need. "

"It's known that most breast cancer recurrences after surgery occur in the same place as the original tumor," said Eleni Tousimis, MD, chief of Breast Surgery at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital. "With INTRABEAM, we are targeting the radiation and only treating the original tumor bed, so we kill any residual cancer cells. We also spare healthy breast tissue that whole-breast radiation may have negatively affected."

Getting the radiation adds another 20 to 40 minutes to the roughly 90 minute surgery, and the patient is asleep while the treatment is given.

INTRABEAM radiotherapy uses a miniaturized radiation device that generates low energy x-ray radiation. The device is inserted into the tumor bed right after the cancer is removed. The radiation is mostly absorbed over a 1-2 centimeter depth from the tumor cavity. This allows for a significant reduction in the amount of radiation delivered to the surrounding healthy tissue.

In 2010 the results of a 28-center international study of more than 2200 patients called the TARGIT-A trial concluded that partial breast radiation is just as effective and less toxic when compared to whole-breast radiation for selected patients with early stage breast cancer. The results were published in the Journal Lancet.

"We know that patient compliance with treatment is part of what determines a good outcome," said Dr. Boisvert. "And we know that the farther away a patient lives from the radiation center the less likely she is to complete her treatment."

"If INTRABEAM IORT had not been an option for me I would have just had more radical surgery, a mastectomy," reflected Mary Shanholtzer. "This technology allowed me to save my life, keep more of my healthy breast and avoid a bigger surgery."

The MedStar Regional Breast Health Program is part of the MedStar Georgetown Cancer Network and combines the experience of internationally-respected experts who provide a wide range of breast care services. Patients have access to the network's full breadth of clinical diagnoses, personalized treatments, advanced surgical options and clinical trials as well as social workers, nutritionists, nurse navigators and other healthcare professionals.

View press release with video: http://bit.ly/14ZZuX0

SOURCE MedStar Georgetown University Hospital