Brachytherapy: Radiation And Cancer Treatment

Radiation and Cancer Treatment

Cancer, or the the disease in which one’s cells abnormally and uncontrollably divide in a certain part of the body, results in the form of tumors or malignant growths. “In 2015, an estimated 1,658,370 new cases of cancer will be diagnosed in the United States and 589,430 people will die from the disease.”(National Cancer Institute). From the mere discovery of the x-ray, discovered by Bertha Roentgen, which able to show the image of the skeletal structure within his hand, to the establishment of the Breast Brachytherapy, which is a common treatment today, the fight against cancer evolves. However, with all the breakthroughs made in the field one question remains: is radiation therapy truly an effective treatment

for combating cancer?

One of the most common types of radiation is External Beam (which most commonly uses Photon radiation), as it is not used to treat only one type of cancer. Photon radiation therapy, uses the same kind of radiation as x-rays and comes from a machine called “linear accelerator. “ The way it works is that the radiation or gamma rays are brought to the surface of the body. The rays pierces through the body, the tumor and out through the body. Along the way, the cells are killed from the high dose of gamma rays. External beams, as implied by the title is external, and is therefore varied in its method on how it externally supplies the radiation. For instance, within the case of Prostate Cancer such methods include, “Three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3D-CRT)” or the use of computer technology to map out the location of the patient’s prostate, “Intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMR” which allows doctors to aim the beam at several angles and adjust the doses of the beams. and “Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT)” which utilizes images in order to deliver high doses of the radiation to a specific area. Such methods sound promising however, specifically for patients being treated for Prostate cancer may experience Bowel problems, bladder problems, urinary problems, urinary incontinence, and Erectile problems generally speaking the most common side effects of External Beam radiation include, “Fatigue (tiredness), Upset stomach, diarrhea or loose stools (if radiation is given to the pelvis or abdomen), nausea and vomiting, and skin changes” and even some secondary cancer around the place of treatment Skin changes may occur as, because it is external, it may damage healthy skin cells in the proximity of the beam. Even with the side effects, this form of radiation therapy is on the upswing as improvements such as proton radiation therapy has been newly established. Proton radiation, unlike photon radiation which releases energy as it travels through the cells, only releases its energy when it reaches a certain distance. This method kills the cells at the end of their path while releasing a high amount of the radiation without lessening the harm on surrounding healthy cells.
In the 1920s, Brachytherapy, or internal radiation therapy was founded, and is now commonly used in the treatment of Breast Cancer.

Brachytherapy is the method of implanting radiation into the precise location of the cancer cells. The radiation is implanted with seeds or capsules filled with different types of radiation. According to the Cancer treatments of America, A computer controls how long these capsules stay in place, how long it is inserted and when it should pause to release the radiation. This method of treatment is used to treat “Prostate cancer, Breast cancer, Lung cancer, Esophageal cancer, Gynecologic cancers, Anal/Rectal tumors, Sarcomas, Head and neck cancers.” According to the American Brachytherapy Society, the procedure comes with short term side effects such as slight bleeding and Long term side effects such as impotence, which usually affects patients over the age of 70 and older. Also concerns include radiation that may be released when a seed is passed through the urine, however, because it emits low doses of radiation it has little effect on an individual yet may directly affect women who are pregnant and

children.

Along with advancements such as Brachytherapy, as of 2011, radioisotopes are paving the way for cancer treatments as it utilizes an isotope’s half-life to stall a tumor’s growth.

As the Royal Society of Chemistry Radioisotopes, are typically bonded to an antibody that binds to cancer cells, and as the isotope decays it “ionises” with the DNA stopping the tumor’s growth short. before, doctors used radioisotope lutetium- 177, that has a half life of six days. This seems promising because its life span allows it to remain still “hot” when it reaches the hospital. However, the problem with this is that because of its half- life, doctors are concerned that it hangs around, causing problems in the future for patients. Luckily,”But now Konstantin Zhernosekov of the Technical University of Munich, Germany, and colleagues have produced a radioisotope that appears even more promising than lutetium-177: terbium.” This is because terbium-161 has a half life of seven days,which emits “two extra low- energy Auger electrons” meaning that compared to lutetium- 171, kills cancer cells faster. This is also promising because terbium 161 emits a low amount of “emits a number of low-energy electrons upon decay, which should make it useful for treating small tumours.” In addition, the study of radioisotopes is ever evolving, as doctors try to find the least harmful tyoe of radioisotope

treatment.

In conclusion,radiation therapy is an effective way to treat Cancer. However, it is an ever developing cause to fight against Cancer as doctors do no have the entire concept of Cancer figured out and how to safely treat patients with Cancer.