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| |  Procedure Offers Promising New Treatment Option For Prostate Cancer TULSA, Okla. -- July 2, 1997 -- Men with prostate cancer now have an alternative to surgery that may cause fewer negative side effects and may offer a better chance for a normal life following treatment. Cancer Treatment Center of Tulsa is one of only a few hospitals in the United States offering high-dose rate remote brachytherapy (pronounced "BRAKE-EE therapy") to treat prostate cancer, and that's good news for the estimated 4,200 men in Oklahoma who will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year. "This procedure is used for more advanced stages of the cancer," said James P. Flynn, M.D., a board-certified radiation oncologist who brought high-dose rate brachytherapy to Cancer Treatment Center. "Hormone therapy to shrink the tumor, followed by high-dose rate brachytherapy and minimal external radiation is the way to go for trying to treat advanced-stage prostate cancer patients," he said. Dr. Flynn believes the treatment greatly reduces the likelihood a patient will develop impotence or incontinence, and offers a reduced recovery time compared to radical prostatectomy. High-dose rate brachytherapy uses a network of catheters inserted in the tumor to deliver a radioactive pellet to specific, pre-planned dwell sites' that are mapped out using a computer. The pellet remains at each site for only a few seconds, allowing very little radiation to reach healthy tissue surrounding the tumor. In fact, the total treatment time for this in-patient procedure is expected to be about five minutes per session and generally encompasses a series of these brief sessions over a few days. While the procedure offers a survival rate similar to that of radical prostatectomy, the expected reduction in side effects and the opportunity to return to a normal life following treatment make high-dose rate remote brachytherapy an attractive option for prostate cancer patients. Dr. Flynn says patient recovery usually is faster with brachytherapy treatments than with radical prostatectomy, resulting in less overall discomfort for the patient. The convenience and shortened recovery time may help save on treatment costs, as well. The technique is available in a handful of hospitals in the U.S. to treat cancer of the prostate, cervix, breast, lung, liver, bile duct, bladder and neck. Brachytherapy often is used in concert with other cancer treatments. At Cancer Treatment Center of Tulsa, high-dose rate prostate brachytherapy is part of an individualized cancer treatment system that encourages each patient to include psychological, nutritional, and spiritual aspects in their overall plan to survive cancer.
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