TARGETING TUMORS
Lung cancer will strike more than 170,000 people in the United States this year. For many patients, medical problems like emphysema make surgery impossible. Radiation is often used instead, but it comes with side effects and may not be very effective. Now, a new technology could change that.
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If all we need is love, this grandpa's life is complete.
But last september, Larry Quinn was diagnosed with lung cancer -- something all the love in the world could not fix.
Larry Quinn
Has lung cancer
"I went to my surgeon. He said, 'Larry, there ain't nothing I can do. I can't operate on you. If I do, I gotta' take 50 to 60 percent of your lung out. And with your lungs like they are, you wouldn't live.'"
But a breakthrough technology gave him an alternative to surgery. It's radiation therapy that precisely targets tumors.
Alan Forbes, M.D., Ph.D.
Radiation Oncologist
M. D. Anderson Cancer Center Orlando
Orlando, FL
"This has really been the goal of lung cancer treatment with radiation over the past 20 years."
In the past, doctors had to radiate the area around tumors because they can move as patients breathe during treatment. That can lead to lung damage, breathing problems, and less successful treatment.
With the new technology, an x-ray identifies exactly where Larry's tumor is from a marker coil. Then a computer system processes the information and turns the radiation beam on and off based on how he's breathing.
Alan Forbes, M.D. Ph.D.
"It's fantastic. It's at the point now someone comes in with stage one or two lung cancer, it's the only option."
Radiating a more specific area will allow doctors to use a higher dosage. For patients, that could mean a better chance at survival.
For Larry, that means spending more time loving the little things in life.
Liver cancer can also be treated with the new method and pancreatic cancer eventually will be treated this way as well. Doctors at the M. D. Anderson Center in Orlando began using the technology this past December. So far, they say they're the only ones in the world using it.
LUNG CANCER: According to the American Cancer Society, there will be more than 172,500 new cases of lung cancer diagnosed this year. For patients in stage one of the disease, doctors will perform surgery to remove the tumor if the patient is medically operable. If medical problems, such as emphysema, prevent surgery from being an option, radiation therapy is an alternative, with chemotherapy added in as the disease progresses.
PROBLEMS WITH RADIATION: Doctors have to choose a radiation beam size that is large enough to hit the tumor. Treating a larger area than necessary can cause lung irritation and damage, more difficulty breathing, and is hard on the patient's quality of life.
REVOLUTIONARY RADIATION: A new method of radiation more precisely targets tumors. It is used for stage one or stage two lung cancer. First, doctors place a gold marker coil into a patient's tumor, which is shown on an X-ray. Then as the patient breathes in and out, doctors can see exactly where the tumor is in the crosshairs. An infrared camera identifies how the patient is breathing. Finally, a computer system processes the information and turns the radiation beam on and off at the right point in the patient's breathing. Patients are in the treatment room for about 10 minutes. They first go through training where they practice taking relaxed, steady breaths. Although it is not entirely necessary, doctors say it makes it easier to have a patient breathing in and out uniformly.
SIMILAR METHODS: Doctors at the M. D. Anderson Cancer Center Orlando are the only ones in the world using this exact technology. There are other similar radiation approaches that have been developed, but the radiation is administered based on a prediction of how the patient is going to breathe, as opposed to exactly how the patient is breathing.
CANDIDATES: Doctors are seeing patients who have stage one or two cancer and cannot be operated on because of medical problems. For many, it is the only option because the dose is so much less to the surrounding tissue.
THE FUTURE: Dr. Forbes, a radiation oncologist at M. D. Anderson, says he hopes that by the end of this year, the method will also be used for patients with locally advanced lung cancer. But there is a size limitation to the radiation beam right now that doctors will have to overcome before they can get to that point. Also, the data indicates that the higher dosage of radiation used, the better the results. Eventually, Dr. Forbes hopes research will show just how high a dosage can be used with the more precise radiation method. That could cut down on the length of treatment and give patients a better chance at survival. Dr. Forbes says a higher dosage could increase the response rate from 60 percent to up to 85 percent. Dr. Forbes also hopes the technology will be available to more centers around the country in the coming months.
Alan Forbes, M.D., Ph.D.
M. D. Anderson Cancer Center Orlando
Department of Radiation Oncology1400 S. Orange Ave. MP 760
Orlando, FL 32806
(407) 841-5183
Copyright © 2005 Ivanhoe Broadcast News, Inc.
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