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Alterscape
 Fresh Boarder
Posts: 18 
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Well, here I am on this journey fighting the beast like the rest of you. As part of my research, given that I've had a lumpectomy and knowing that radiation is going to be part of the program going forward, I found a new method of radiation therapy called Mammosite, provided by a company called
Proxima Therapeutics. The basic procedure is similar to how they are treating some prostate cancers these days: a catheter places an uniflated ballon into the tumour cavity, then the ballon is filled with saline. A radioactive seed is placed in the ballon then a measured does of radiation is given. The balloon stays inflated for the full course of treatment, which is 5 days, 2X/day as opposed to daily for 7-8 weeks with traditional external beam radiation. Has anyone had experience with this treatment?
What was the result? I know that there are only 2 locations where it is offered in Canada, both in Montreal. Just posting to see if anyone has had personal experience with this treatment.
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You must do the thing you think you cannot do.
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doggomeow
Junior Boarder
Posts: 32
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so don't be surprised if no-one here has personal experience yet. Mammosite is a variation of brachytherapy (internal RT with isotopes), something we've done as an adjuvant boost to external RT of BC for ages. Whats new is the program's lack of external RT. I'm not entirely happy with their stats, I'd give them a few more years to see how the long-term results are. Theoretically the patient is spared the radiation effects to the skin, which in some people can look as bad as a severe sunburn.
I recommended brachytherapy-only to an obese poster recently because she was getting suboptimal external RT and had refused further treatment. BT alone is always better than no RT.>>
Thanks for the informative and helpful post. I didn't know much about it before, although wondered about when it was used and on whom. It's good to have an expert's opinion.
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What you have lost will not be returned to you. It will always be lost. You're left with only your scars to mark the void. All you can choose to do is go on or not. But if you go on, it's knowing you carry your scars with you.
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Alterscape
Fresh Boarder
Posts: 18
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Well traditional radiation therapy appears to be very time-consuming and requires daily visits to a regional cancer clinic an hour away from me, and will likely run its course over 2 months or so (not sure about the number of treatments to be recommended yet.) I do not have the luxury of taking a significant amount of time away from work and am simply researching to find effective new methods of fighting this disease. If I must go traditional RT then I will find the time for it.
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You must do the thing you think you cannot do.
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