Advocate Good Shepherd offers new breast cancer treatment
Imagine being able to complete radiation therapy for breast cancer during your surgery.
Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital is the first in the area to make this possible via state-of-the-art Intraoperative Radiation Therapy. The revolutionary INTRABEAM® Radiotherapy System makes it possible for doctors to deliver targeted radiation treatment directly to the tumor site in surgery immediately following a lumpectomy.
This new radiation platform can possibly eliminate the need, or reduce the time frame for, external beam radiation therapy following surgery with a single 20-30 minute targeted radiation treatment.
Dr. Barry Rosen, surgeon and vice president of medical management at Good Shepherd Hospital, is one of the first doctors on staff to use this during a breast cancer surgery.
“For many women, the challenge with breast conserving surgery is the seven weeks of radiation therapy they need following surgery. By using intraoperative radiation, patients can choose to have a lumpectomy but still receive the recommended dose of radiation therapy without disrupting their day to day lives.”
The INTRABEAM system was the only radiotherapy device used in the TARGIT-A clinical trial, the largest randomized clinical trial conducted in the field of intraoperative radiotherapy for the treatment of breast cancer.
The TARGIT-A trial was launched in 2000 with 2,232 patients throughout nine countries. With up to 10-year follow-up data, the study results demonstrate the equivalency of single-dose targeted IORT in comparison to external beam radiation therapy based on local recurrence.
Unlike whole breast radiation treatment, which is administered five times per week for as many as seven weeks, the INTRABEAM System provides patients with a targeted single-dose radiation treatment delivered intraoperatively after removal of the tumor.
Before the surgeon closes the incision, the applicator tip is positioned in the area of the breast where the tumor was located. This ensures radiation delivery accuracy and minimizes geographical miss. The radiation is applied for 20-30 minutes by a radiation oncologist, exposing the affected tissues in the tumor bed from the inside. When completed, the surgeon removes the applicator tip and closes the incision.
“Good Shepherd Hospital chose to adopt this system because of the impact it can have on our patients' lives,” said Dr. James Ruffer, radiation oncologist.
“In addition to the convenience of a one-time treatment, this new system also shows additional benefits, including less irritation of healthy breast tissue, minimized exposure to the chest cavity and underlying organs and fewer skin reactions such as redness, rashes and irritation.”
Both doctors caution, however, that not every woman is a candidate for this procedure.
“The best candidates are those women diagnosed in the early stages of breast cancer with smaller tumors,” says Dr. Rosen. “In addition, 15 percent of the time patients may still need external beam radiation but for a much shorter time frame.”
Advocate Good Shepherd in Barrington is a 169-bed acute care hospital with more than 700 physicians representing 50 medical specialties. It is part of Advocate Health Care, named one of the Top Ten hospital systems in the U.S. by Thomson-Reuters.
Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital is ranked highest in Illinois for quality and patient safety according to Blue Cross Blue Shield's 2011 Blue Star Report. Advocate is a faith-based organization that exists to serve its communities.
In 2010, Advocate provided more than $474,000,000 in charity care and services to its communities.
For more about Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital, visit www.advocatehealth.com/goodshep.