New research shows that a single high-dose brachytherapy treatment is as effective and safe against localized prostate cancer as many low dose over time. The researchers at Oakland University’s William Beaumont School of Medicine in Royal Oaks, Michigan, said “It is becoming apparent that patients may be treated definitively for their prostate cancer in as little as a single day with a minimally invasive outpatient procedure.” They are finding that “patients generally can resume normal activities the following day with typical side effects.” You can read the entire article here: “Single High Dose of Brachytherapy Is Effective Against Prostate Cancer, Study Finds.”
Most brachytherapy treatment for prostate cancer is given in either of two ways: low-dose-rate brachytherapy which involves the permanent implanting of radioactive seeds in the tumor, where they release low levels of radiation for months. The other is high-dose-rate therapy that involves implanting a radiation seed for one treatment, then removing it, with four to nine different treatment sessions.
This new research shows that a patients who receive a single 19Gy dose of high-dose-rate brachytherapy have similar out comes as those receiving LDR brachytherapy over time. The treatment’s three-year cumulative biochemical control rate was 93%.
Researchers form this study are calling for additional research to be done to compare the long-term cancer control rates of a one-time, high-dose treatment with low-dose treatment over time.