CNS Tumors - Lung Cancer - Prostate Cancer - Head & Neck Cancer - Breast & Gynecological Cancers
As with other types of cancer, cancers of the central nervous system (CNS) often benefit from combining therapies. However, because CNS cancers involve the brain and spinal cord, treatment considerations can be more involved. In the brain and spinal cord, both benign and malignant tumors are dangerous. In some cases, surgical removal is not a viable alternative. Plus, there are 126 types of CNS tumors that are diverse in their biology and response to treatment.
Today, radiation therapy plays a vital role in treating CNS cancers. Depending on the tumor’s type, its location, the patient’s health and all other considerations, radiation therapy can be a primary or adjuvant therapy. At Florida Regional Cancer Centers (FRCC), we offer today’s most advanced treatment methods for CNS cancers.
Radiosurgery
Radiosurgery allows us to treat brain and spine tumors without surgery, and therefore without incision, bleeding, scarring, pain and recovery time. Another advantage of radiosurgery over surgical resection are the short duration of outpatient treatments. Today’s modern radiosurgical capabilities afford a level of pinpoint accuracy, flexibility and ease that makes radiosurgery the preferred treatment even for some cases where surgery remains an option.
Intensity-modulated radiosurgery (IMRT) offers the capability of delivering high radiation dosages to brain and spine tumors without exceeding these areas’ tolerance. Since a tumor is three-dimensional, beams are directed at the tumor from different angles or directions to conform to its irregular shape. IMRT allows us to change the shape of each beam during the treatment, which allows optimal radiation dose delivery to the brain or spine tumor while at the same time protecting the spinal cord or sensitive brain tissues and structures from radiation. IMRT is a viable alternative for patients with a CNS tumor who aren’t candidates for one-session stereotactic radiosurgery.
Lung cancer remains the most common cancer-related cause of death among American men and women. The American Cancer Society estimates the disease will claim over 162,000 lives this year alone. Radiation therapy can be used to treat small lung tumors; it is also the principal treatment approach for inoperable and advanced lung cancers. In addition, radiation therapy can be used before surgery to shrink the tumor and after surgery to eliminate any cancer cells that remain. Florida Regional Cancer Centers (FRCC) offers today’s latest and most effective treatment methods for lung cancer.
Effective, less hazardous treatment methods for lung cancer.
Radiation treatment for lung cancer depends on the type and size of the cancer, its location and the patient’s general health. Typically, several different treatments or combinations of treatments are used to fight lung cancer. (Radiation treatment can be used in conjunction with chemotherapy.) Besides attacking the lung tumor, radiation treatment can help relieve some of the symptoms cancer causes, such as shortness of breath caused by a tumor obstructing the airway, pain or bleeding.
Intensity-modulated radiation therapy
FRCC is one of the few radiation oncology practices in Central Florida to offer “dynamic” intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT). This is an advanced form of three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3D-CRT) that uses digital images of the body to plan beam arrangements that will best target the lung tumor. By moving small individual leaves, dynamic IMRT allows us to deliver the dose where we need to and spare the adjacent normal tissues. Ultimately, this can increase treatment success and reduce side effects.
Lung brachytherapy
Another procedure for treating lung cancer available at FRCC is high-dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy, which can help stop bleeding and open up blocked airway in the lung. This procedure is used to give an added radiation dose to lung cancers that are located in the major bronchi (breathing passages) and to treat recurrent endobronchial tumors where additional surgery and external-beam radiation therapy are no longer options. With lung brachytherapy, a small radioactive source is positioned using a catheter passed down a bronchial tube and guided with the help of a CT scanner. Once the seed emits the radiation doses necessary to achieve desired results, it is removed.
Continually improving treatment strategies and techniques like IMRT and lung brachytherapy have brought encouraging news to patients with lung cancer.
Cancer of the prostate gland is common; the American Cancer Society estimates that over 234,000 new cases will be diagnosed this year alone. Prostate cancer is the third-leading cause of cancer death in American men, exceeded only by lung cancer and colon cancer. Florida Regional Cancer Centers (FRCC), we treat prostate cancer more effectively than ever using innovative methods.Our board-certified radiation oncologists, Dr. Jayanth G. Rao and Dr. Ravi K. Sandrapati, are highly trained and skilled in the latest treatment methods for prostate cancer.
State-of-the-art treatment methods
FRCC is one of the first radiation oncology practices in Central Florida to offer “dynamic” intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT). This allows us to precisely and continually modulate the shape and intensity of the radiation beam to the tumor’s three-dimensional shape during treatment. This advanced mode of high-precision radiotherapy uses computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to map and locate the cancerous prostate. IMRT uses these accurate images and data to deliver doses to the prostate that are higher than conventional radiation therapy while much lower to the bladder and rectum. Because the ratio of normal tissue to tumor dose is reduced to a minimum with IMRT, the risk of side effects and complications is greatly reduced.
Real-time images for precision & patient safety.
The prostate has a tendency to shift position, which puts patients at risk of having healthy organs irradiated and damaged in treatments that take place over several weeks’ time. Using our SonArray™ system, 3D ultrasound images and optical technology enable us to track the prostate tumor’s actual position in real time and ensure that the target is positioned precisely for each treatment.
Another innovative treatment method for prostate cancer is brachytherapy. FRCC performs low-dose-rate (LDR) brachytherapy and high-dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy. With LDR brachytherapy, low-dose radioactive “seeds” are permanently implanted into the prostate. Tiny radioactive seeds (about the size of a rice grain) are directly implanted via a thin catheter or needles into the prostate gland. The volume and shape of the prostate is accurately mapped out prior to, and during, treatment through the use of computed tomography (CT) or ultrasound images. These seeds give off radiation over a period of two months.
HDR brachytherapy involves the temporary placement of a high-dose radioactive source directly into the prostate. The source gives off
radiation over a period of several minutes and is then withdrawn. HDR may be repeated several times per day or a number of times over one or more weeks. The aim of both LDR and HDR is to destroy the tumor in the area where a seed has been placed. This form of high-precision treatment is taken to the next level when combined with daily localization.
This year, about 62,000 Americans will be diagnosed with some type of head or neck cancer. These include cancers of the sinuses, oral cavity (floor of the mouth, tongue tonsils), oropharynx (throat), hypopharynx, larynx (voice box) and upper esophagus. Many cancers of the head and neck can be cured if they are diagnosed and treated early. Comprehensive treatment planning for head and neck cancer is paramount, particularly because tumors that form in these regions can affect speech, swallowing and facial nerve function. Here at Florida Regional Cancer Centers (FRCC), our team meticulously develops treatment plans to not only destroy a tumor but also provide for functional rehabilitation of the patient.
The next dimension in radiation therapy.
For cancers of the head and neck, external-beam radiation therapy is one of three primary treatments. The other two are
surgery and chemotherapy, which are often combined with radiation therapy for the best treatment results. Three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3D-CRT) combines multiple radiation treatment fields to deliver precise doses of radiation to head and neck tumors while at the same time minimizing the amount of radiation to nearby healthy tissue.
Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) takes 3D-CRT to a whole new level. IMRT, using detailed 3D computed tomography (CT) imagery and powerful computer planning and control, conforms the energy beam to precisely match the three-dimensional shape of the tumor. The result is accurate delivery of radiation to the tumor with less potential for side effects. FRCC was one the first radiation oncology practices in Central Florida to offer IMRT and “dynamic” IMRT. Unlike static “step-and-shoot” IMRT, dynamic IMRT enables us to continually and precisely contour and reshape the energy beam during treatment.
Providing hope when it's needed most.An important issue with head and neck cancers is recurrence. Some patients who have been treated with radiation therapy in the past will have their cancer reappear. But cumulative radiation exposure can disqualify them for retreatment. IMRT’s lower overall radiation volumes, however, could make repeat treatments possible. They may be low enough to permit IMRT treatment even when initial treatment was with conventional radiotherapy.
But whether for an initial diagnosis or a recurrence, IMRT offers new hope in the form of more powerful treatment with fewer risks and a higher quality of life.
Breast & Gynecological Cancers
One out of every nine women will develop breast cancerat some point in her life. However, if breast cancer is diagnosed early, while the tumor is small and before malignant cells have spread to neighboring lymph nodes, there is a 90 percent to 95 percent chance of a cure. Today, more than 70 percent of all breast biopsies in the United States are benign. But when the diagnosis of cancer is made, surgical intervention may be required.
Advances in radiation therapy have dramatically impacted breast cancer treatment. Commonly, lumpectomy is used to first remove the tumor and radiation then destroys any cancerous cells that remain,thereby helping to prevent removal of the entire breast. Radiation can also be used before surgery to reduce tumor size, thereby making surgery possible.
Here at Florida Regional Cancer Centers (FRCC), we perform today’s most innovative breast radiotherapy treatments that offer less risk, better cosmetic results and greater hope for recovery. Our board-certified radiation oncologists, Dr. Ernest Ngo and Dr. Chu-Pei Feng, are highly trained and skilled in breast radiotherapy, and they have over 40 years of combined experience.
The ABC’s of IMRT.
Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) represents a significant advance in the treatment of breast cancer, and FRCC was one of the first centers in Central Florida to offer it. With IMRT, greater amounts of radiation can be delivered to the breast tumor with less healthy-tissue exposure (particularly the lung and heart) and better cosmetic results than other forms of external-beam radiotherapy. In addition, breast cancer patients who undergo IMRT can be spared the side effects of standard radiation therapy, such as skin irritation, breakdown and scarring of the lungs and potentially even treatment-related heart complications. FRCC is one of the first to offer “dynamic” IMRT, which enables us to continually and precisely contour and reshape the energy beam to the breast tumor site during treatment.
MammoSite Radiation Therapy System.It’s no secret that women are more apt to prefer breast conservation therapy over traditional mastectomy for treatment of operable breast cancer. The Mammosite Radiation Therapy System (RTS) is a revolutionary tool for improving delivery of short-duration, high-dose brachytherapy in those select patients who are candidates for breast conservation. FRCC is one of only a few centers in Central Florida to offer this minimally invasive outpatient procedure, which is performed after lumpectomy.
The MammoSite device is a small, soft balloon attached to a thin catheter that is placed inside the lumpectomy cavity (the space left after the tumor is removed). A tiny radioactive MammoSite seed is then inserted into the balloon and delivers radiation from inside the breast. This focuses the radiation dose close to the tissue that is at highest risk for recurrence. Each daily treatment is only a few minutes long and the entire treatment is given in five days instead of seven weeks and, in many cases, allows women to avoid mastectomy. This treatment is performed on an outpatient basis.
Treatment of gynecologic cancersIMRT also provides precise conformance with external-beam radiation for certain gynecologic cancers. For patients with uterine and cervical cancers, FRCC offers brachytherapy as an adjuvant treatment to external beam irradiation. Today’s state-of-the-art brachytherapy has proven highly effective in treating gynecologic tumors because it offers greater accuracy, less discomfort and less risk. If appropriate, we treat gynecologic cancers with high-dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy. CT guidance and computer-controlled precision delivery of temporary seeds enable more effective doses to the cancer for shorter periods of time (10 to 15 minutes). This eliminates the need for anesthesia, rectal tubes, Foley catheters, guesswork and vaginal packing while reducing the risk of complications.
To learn more about FRCC’s innovative treatment methods for breast cancer and gynecologic cancers, please call us today.
3406 N. Lecanto Hwy. Suite A, Beverly Hills, FL. 34465
3201 Southwest 33rd Rd. Ocala, FL. 34474