Brachytherapy
- diagramatic view
Brachytherapy
is a one-off day-patient procedure that is done under general
anaesthetic. A series of hollow needles are inserted around and
within the prostate, with filaments (containing radioactive Iodine
or Palladium seeds) then inserted through them. Correct placement
is ensured via an ultrasound probe inserted in the rectum. The
final step in the brachytherapy procedure is removal of the hollow
needles.
'Brachy'
means 'short' and in this kind of radiotherapy, the source of
the radiation is placed inside the prostate itself, at a short
distance from the cancer.
There
are two different forms of brachytherapy - in the low dose form,
radio-active seeds are placed in the prostate and left there.
In the high dose form, radioactive wires which give off a high
dose of radiation are placed in the prostate for a limited period
of time, and then removed.
In
both forms, ultrasound is used to guide the placement of seeds
or wires so that the entire prostate is irradiated. Because the
irradiated area is largely the prostate, there is a reduced risk
of damage to the bladder and bowel, and side-effects such as impotence,
incontinence and bowel symptoms may be reduced. Side effects of
brachytherapy may be experienced during or shortly after treatment
or over a longer timeframe.
Possible
short term side-effects of brachytherapy include irritation of
the bowel or bladder. Side effects that may occur later, only
in a small number of cases, include urethral stricture, injury
to the rectum and impotence.
Consequently,
this kind of therapy is often chosen by men who are sexually active
and would like to retain normal erections. However, because the
therapy is relatively new, it is not known whether this therapy
is as effective as surgery and external beam radiotherapy.
A
combination of brachytherapy, external beam therapy and hormonal
therapy is used in some treatment plans. Brachytherapy is only
available at a limited number of treatment centres and you should
discuss access to these centres with your doctor.
READ
MORE ABOUT EXTERNAL BEAM RADIOTHERAPY
