Brachytherapy or implant therapy

Also known as internal radiation, brachytherapy involves placing radioactive material into a tumor or its surrounding tissue. This therapy delivers a large dose of radiation directly to the cancer cells with minimal exposure to normal, surrounding tissue.

The radioactive sources used in brachytherapy, such as thin wires, ribbons, capsules or seeds, come in small sealed containers. Some sources are placed permanently and remain in the body after their radiation has been expended and the source is no longer radioactive. Other sources are placed temporarily inside the body and removed after the prescribed dose has been delivered.

Interstitial implants are performed when a needle or other invasive device is used to place the source into the body, for example, prostate seed implants or Mammosite treatment of breast cancer. Intracavitary implants are performed when the body’s natural cavities hold the radiation source, for example, gynecologic implants or lung implants using the patient’s airways. The following implant procedures are available at Saint Joseph’s:

• Prostate Seed Implant - an option for the treatment of prostate cancer.  An outpatient procedure performed under general or local anesthesia, most patients return home the same day.  Radioactive iodine (I-125) and palladium (Pd-103) sources are used; Prostate seed implants can be used alone (monotherapy) or combined with external beam therapy.
   
• Mammosite® radiation therapy system –for treatment of breast cancer and delivers radiation from inside the breast directly to the tissue where cancer is most likely to recur.
  Requires surgical placement of the MammoSite® catheter into the lumpectomy site. Treatment is generally completed in five days. Saint Joseph’s radiation oncologists are one of the first to offer this treatment option and have treated more patients than any other practice in the Southeast.

For more information about Saint Joseph’s Center for Cancer Care and Research, call 404-851-7117.