To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: ASBS: Early Data on Partial Breast Irradiation Are Promising URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/24B93A.htm Doctor's Guide March 24, 2005
By Norra MacReady LOS ANGELES, CA -- March 24, 2005 -- Accelerated partial breast irradiation (APBI) is gaining acceptance among doctors and patients as adjuvant treatment for breast cancer, researchers reported here on March 20th at the 6th annual meeting of the American Society of Breast Surgeons. The technique involves accelerated postoperative delivery of radiation specifically to the area around the tumor site, thus minimizing radiation to healthy tissue. A treatment course lasts 5 days, said Douglas W. Arthur, MD, associate professor and vice-chairman, Radiation Oncology, Virginia Commonwealth University Medical College, Richmond, Virginia, United States. Currently the most popular approach to APBI in the United States is a balloon device system called MammoSite, made by Proxima Therapeutics of Alpharetta, Georgia, United States. The United States Food and Drug Administration approved the system in 2002. In this procedure, a balloon catheter is placed in the surgical cavity during or after surgery. A radioactive seed inside the balloon delivers a prescribed amount of radiation, and is removed after 5 days. In the American Society of Breast Surgeons MammoSite Registry Trial involving 793 patients at 71 U.S. institutions, the technique showed good technical reproducibility, Dr. Arthur said. In 92% of the patients, cosmetic results at 12 months were good to excellent, and early toxicity rates appear acceptable, he said. The expected failure rate was also low, although follow-up time is still short, he added. Another promising approach to APBI is 3D-conformal external beam irradiation. It is noninvasive, delivers a more homogeneous dose of radiation than the balloon system, and has the potential for the best cosmesis. In Phase I and II trials on 87 patients, there were no recurrences and a 100% rate of good to excellent cosmetic results. However, these patient numbers are small, and the maximum follow-up time is only 18 months. Multicatheter APBI, which involves the placement of multiple radiation-bearing catheters around the target site, is the original technique, but it is rarely used in the United States today because it requires a longer learning curve and causes more pain and breast trauma than the newer methods, Dr. Arthur said. A growing number of physicians are using APBI as a viable treatment alternative, but phase 3 data are necessary to develop guidelines for its use and to establish it as the standard of care. A randomized trial comparing it to whole breast irradiation is now under way, with the goal of accruing 3000 patients within 29 months, Dr. Arthur said. [Presentation title: APBI --Techniques, Data, and Future.] --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 1999 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of P\S\L content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of P\S\L. P\S\L shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this content or any other content on its sites, newsletters or other publications, nor for any decisions or actions taken in reliance on such content. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This news story was printed from *Doctor's Guide to the Internet* located at http://www.docguide.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to News Story Page This site is maintained by webmaster@pslgroup.com Please contact us with any comments, problems or bugs. All contents Copyright (c) 1998 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved.