Partial Breast Irradiation
Stanford Cancer Center radiologists lead their field in advancing
breast cancer treatment. By tapping into this deep expertise, the
Cancer Center is one of the few hospitals in the country able to
provide women with clinical trial access to some of the most exciting
recent advances in breast cancer radiation therapy, collectively
called partial breast irradiation.
Although whole breast irradiation has a long track record of success
in preventing breast cancer recurrence, researchers now believe that
it may be possible to achieve similar results while limiting radiation
to the region directly surrounding the tumor, where a recurrences are
most likely to occur.
Stanford radiologists are carefully selecting patients who may
benefit from three different techniques that provided partial breast
irradiation: intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT), five-day
external beam radiation, and MammoSite brachytherapy.
All three of these techniques limit the exposure of healthy tissue
to radiation and greatly reduce the time commitment required to
receive radiation therapy. In addition to being convenient, rapidly
completing radiation therapy also allows you to receive chemotherapy
sooner, if appropriate.
Intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT)
Intraoperative
radiation therapy (IORT) is the fastest of the three methods for
partial breast irradiation, delivering a short burst of high-intensity
radiation to the tumor site during lumpectomy surgery.
Five-day external beam radiation
Five-day external
beam radiation delivers a higher dose of radiation twice a day
for five days following lumpectomy surgery.
MammoSite brachytherapy
MammoSite
brachytherapy uses a catheter to temporarily deliver a radioactive
seed directly into the breast where the tumor has been removed.
