The Michael and Dianne Bienes Comprehensive Cancer Center at Holy Cross Hospital is the first medical center in South Florida to offer early breast cancer patients a new form of single-dose radiation treatment that may reduce some of the potential side effects associated with conventional radiation treatment. The revolutionary new treatment utilizes advanced technology, known as the INTRABEAM® Radiotherapy System, to deliver targeted, intraoperative radiotherapy (IORT) directly to the tumor site during a patient’s lumpectomy.
"Delivering radiation therapy in the operating room provides a less invasive treatment option for our patients who have been diagnosed with early stage breast cancer," said surgical oncologist Dr. Joseph Casey of Holy Cross Hospital. "Compared to more traditional radiation treatments, intraoperative radiotherapy provides multiple benefits for patients who are candidates."
Intraoperative delivery allows radiation to be applied in the area of the breast where the tumor was located. This ensures radiation delivery accuracy and minimizes geographical miss. The INTRABEAM radiation is applied for 20 to 30 minutes, exposing the affected tissue in the tumor bed from the inside. The surgeon then removes the INTRABEAM applicator and closes the incision.
INTRABEAM radiotherapy delivered during surgery may provide a viable treatment alternative for patients meeting specific treatment conditions. Unlike whole breast radiation treatment, which is administered daily for up to six weeks, INTRABEAM IORT provides eligible patients with a convenient, innovative medical breakthrough and a treatment option that may be more easily incorporated into a patient’s daily life.
In addition to the convenience of radiotherapy delivered during surgery, the INTRABEAM system has been shown to provide additional benefits compared to traditional conventional external beam radiotherapy (EBRT). These include less irritation of healthy breast tissue, minimized exposure to the chest cavity and underlying organs, and fewer skin reactions, such as redness, rashes and irritation. There is also no treatment delay for patients who must also undergo chemotherapy as part of the breast cancer treatment compared to EBRT, which can require up to a one month delay in radiation treatment.
IORT was successfully introduced through an internationally randomized, controlled clinical trial called TARGIT-A, which compared a single dose of radiation given intraoperatively to EBRT in women with early breast cancer. The TARGIT-A clinical trial, the largest randomized clinical trial conducted in the field of IORT for the treatment of breast cancer, was launched in 2000 and enrolled 2,232 patients throughout 28 centers in nine countries.
