Targeted radiation to liver tumors spares tissue, improves quali...( facturer showed the median survival ra...)

facturer, showed the median survival rate doubled from 12.8 months with chemotherapy alone to 27.1 months with SIRT and chemotherapy. SIRT is another means of attack in the battle against liver cancer. "This is not a cure. It's a prolongation of life and an improvement of survival and quality of life," said Dr. Bill Martin, associate professor of Radiology and Radiological Sciences at Vanderbilt. However, unlike many cancer therapies, side effects are minimal.

"For the patient, it's a one-time deal and they feel relatively fine afterwards. We don't do too many procedures like that."

Many patients experience a post-procedural fever that starts immediately after implantation of the spheres and can last from a few days to a week. The fever is usually nocturnal and is likely related to the embolic effect of the microspheres and the acute radiation effects on the tumor. Some patients experience significant abdominal pain immediately after the procedure and may need pain relief with narcotic analgesia, but the pain generally subsides within an hour. Some patients will experience nausea that may require anti-emetic medication. The therapy has been used to treat hundreds of patients with liver cancer in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore and Thailand. and more recently in the United States in a variety of clinical trials and in general practice.

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Contact: Clinton Colmenares or Cynthia Manley
clinton.colmenares@vanderbilt.edu
615-322-4747
Vanderbilt University Medical Center
11-Nov-2002

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