Although it is only offered at about a dozen or so facilities in the U.S., as data continue to accumulate, brachytherapy may be offered to more women in the next five years, Vicini says. And compared with external beam radiation, brachytherapy is likely to trigger fewer side effects. With brachytherapy, radioactive seeds are concentrated in the area of the breast where the tumor was previously removed, giving a high radiation dose to this area while reducing the dose to surrounding healthy tissues in the body including skin, lungs, chest wall, and other normal tissue, he explains. Traditional external beam radiation can irritate the skin around the area where the beam hits, damage healthy tissue and organs, and increase the risk of heart disease. With brachytherapy, there is a lot less radiation exposure to healthy tissue, Kelly says.
Radiation appears to be more effective if it can be given earlier rather than later.
Still, none of this is to downplay the advantages of external beam radiation treatment, he cautions. External beam radiation to the whole breast is a very common, proven treatment and is usually well-tolerated. All rights reserved. All rights reserved.