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A More Direct Way to Treat Prostate Cancer
GammaWest Brachytherapy located at Salt Lake Regional Medical Center offers Brachytherapy - a new form of prostate cancer treatment that involves implanting radioactive seeds directly into the tumor. Brachytherapy enables the physician to apply a higher dose of radiation to the tumor, while avoiding healthy tissue and organs. This localized, precise treatment has been shown to be a powerful weapon in the fight against certain cancers, including:
For most patients, Brachytherapy treatment has very few side effects.
GammaWest Brachytherapy is the first clinic in the Intermountain West, and one of the first in the nation, to specialize in Brachytherapy. The physicians perform hundreds of these procedures each year and offer both permanent seed prostate implants and HDR temporary prostate implants to meet various patient needs.
Advantages of Brachytherapy in Prostate Cancer
Increasing numbers of men are opting for prostate Brachytherapy because:
- It is less expensive than invasive surgery
- Fewer side effects are experienced than with other procedures
- Recovery time is very short
- Quality of life including impotence and incontinence has a higher probability of being preserved
- Alternatives to Prostate Brachytherapy
Temporary High Dose Rate (HDR) Implants for Prostate Cancer
The majority of our treatments utilize a state-of-the-art High-Dose Rate (HDR) remote afterloader that delivers a precise dose of radiation to the specific tumor area. This type of implant refered to as a "Temporary implant" is able to deliver an extremely precise dose of radiation and has a short duration of symptoms. This treatment requires a 24-hour stay in the hospital. During this short time period, flexible catheters are placed precisely into the prostate via a procedure called "Interstitial Implantation". This procedure is performed in the operating room under local anesthetic. After recovery, the radiation is delivered via these catheters utilizing the High-Dose Rate remote afterloader in our clinic facility located within the hospital where your treatment is scheduled. The patient is not radioactive after treatment with High-Dose Rate Brachytherapy.
Permanent Seed Low Rate (LDR) Implants for Prostate Cancer
Permanent seed implants (LDR) are performed as a monotherapy. A permanent seed implant of the prostate gland utilizes radiaition sources or (seeds) that are placed directly into the prostate gland through rigid catheters (Interstitial Implantation). This procedure is performed in the hospital setting on an outpatient basis with general anesthesia. The "seeds" (smaller than a of grain of rice) are placed within and around the prostate gland. The seeds deliver a highly concentrated dose of radiaition to the tumor with a reduced dose to surrounding tissues.
For more information about brachytherapy, visit www.gammawest.com. Or call 801-350-8400.
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