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Brachytherapy? Anyone had this?

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Posted 7/8/2011 5:53 PM (GMT 0)
Hello, I got some great input on the da vinci surgery and a few comments on the Proton therapy.  I would love some feed back on bracytherapy and some results after a few years.  Anyone out there with some imput?

thanks

Lisa

Posted 7/8/2011 7:34 PM (GMT 0)
I had brachytherapy on June 20. So far I have just some minor side effects - blood in urine for a few days, little discomfort while peeing. Brachytherapy is as good as (if not better) than surgery and compared to surgery it has virtually no side effects. However, what treatment is appropriate for one depends on the diagnosis and other factors. Best thing to do a lot of research on all types of treatments.

 

Posted 7/8/2011 7:41 PM (GMT 0)
Lisa - you can click on the SEARCH button above and search brachytherapy  to find many of the previous posts.
Posted 7/8/2011 8:32 PM (GMT 0)
Lisa,
I had Brachy about 2 1/2 years ago followed by IMRT (combination treatment). The only side effects I had were about 4 weeks of urinary frequency and urgency that were very tolorable and didn't affect any of my daily activities. The procedure was about 1 hour and I went out to lunch after. I played golf the next day. My psa has been .1 since the treatment and never had ED or bowel issues. My urinary functions are slightly better than before treatment. Finding a doctor that has done at least 500 procedures is an absolute must as experience is a major factor in a successful outcome. Most of the latest published data indicate Brachy is at least equal and in many cases superior to surgery in terms of cancer control across all gleason grades and quality of life issues are clearly better. "Brachytherapy and IMRT" by Dr Michael Dattoli is a good book if you wish to get into specific details about the procedure.
Most of the guys on this forum that have had the procedure have had excellent results.
JohnT
Posted 7/8/2011 8:56 PM (GMT 0)
John T,

Thanks so much for your reply!  I will get the book, this seems like the way to go, as my partner is so healthy and active at age 62, we play a lot of tennis along with other sports too.  His numbers are in the correct range for it too. 

Lisa :-)

Posted 7/8/2011 9:22 PM (GMT 0)
Lisa, feel free to copy and paste my "journey" at the end of my signature to get a very detailed description of my brachytherapy experience.  I'm a tennis player also and was on the court within a couple of days post-procedure.

If one qualifies for brachy it is an excellent choice (IMHO) for both cure and minimization of side effects.

Good luck,

Tudpock (Jim)

Posted 7/8/2011 9:59 PM (GMT 0)
I am one year out and am happy with the proceedures I had (IMRT and BT).

One thing I have read is that "size matters" with respect to BT. Size of the prostate that is. :-)

Smaller is better when it comes to having BT from what I've read.
Posted 7/9/2011 3:17 PM (GMT 0)
Lisa,

I had combo of BT and IGRT....see below. My experience pretty much mirrors that of John T's post above. Very happy with my choice, the way I feel, and my last three PSA results.

Cure rate and quality of life were major considerations for me. So far I haven't been disappointed. Regards,

Joe

Posted 7/9/2011 5:04 PM (GMT 0)
WOW...thank you gentlemen...I am sharing all this information with my partner.  He is thinking this is the way to go instead of surgery, I think he is tired of doing research and thinking about it and just wanted it taken out, thats where i come in, doing research and helping him with this..thank goodness for this blog!!!

Lisa :-)

Posted 7/9/2011 8:39 PM (GMT 0)
Lisa,
Check out my post today titled .20. That is my PSA after my 10 month test. I had brachy in October of last year. I would recommend it to anyone who is a 'good canditate'. At this point, my life is no different than it was before my diagnosis. Hopefully this will continue.
Best of luck and God bless.
Posted 7/10/2011 12:45 PM (GMT 0)
Lisa, also look at High Dose Rate brachytherapy. This is the procedure that does not leave the seeds in permanently. The advantages are that it is more conformal to the cancer in both the area and dose strength of the radiation. Thus, it should be more effective and with lower side effects. It is a technological refinement of permanent seeding similar to the technological improvements of robotic surgery versus open surgery. My medical oncologist refers to it as "21st century brachytherapy".

I had HDR last December and had very minimal side effects actually less than what John T reported. The best information is at www.cetmc.com by Dr Jeffrey Demanes, the HDR pioneer. He has performed HDR for Prostate and other cancers since 1981. He is the head of brachytherapy radiation at UCLA Medical Center.
Posted 7/10/2011 7:37 PM (GMT 0)
Lisa
Dr. Demanes of UCLA mentioned earlier just had a long term study published about the results of high dose brachy and they are excellent in every respect: cure rates, side effects, etc. If that is an option for your partner its definitely a good one. I just had cyberknife therapy done, which is radiation treatment that mimics HDBr, (my RO was a former Brachytherapy specialist) with an added bonus of being non invasive. Cyberknife has been around for 6 or 7 years so it is a relatively new "kid on the block", but the results have been very good, and quality of life post op is preserved. Something to read and think about, for sure. I think the tradeoff between surgery and radiation is that surgery might give you potentially bigger problems from the outset, which then subside - or not - while radiation preserves all functions but may have some adverse effects many, many years later - or not! Impossible to guess. I decided to live today and went for the most advanced version of radiotherapy around - cyberknife. It is a big decision, for anyone, because we have to live with the results. One thing I will say: whatever you choose, find the BEST people that do the treatment of your choice, even if it means travel to another state. That's what i would do (when i briefly considered DaVinci i was going to fly to Florida to have it done). Research, double check, get many opinions, trust noone, educate yourself, and then make a choice. That is probably the hardest part of the journey. Good luck to you both.
Posted 7/11/2011 4:24 PM (GMT 0)
Find best place and Qualified Doctor.  We live on the central coast of Califronia.  With all this new great information we are looking into the best place to get the seed therapy.  Any words of wisdom out there! turn

Thanks

Lisa

Posted 7/11/2011 8:39 PM (GMT 0)
You can't go wrong with Dr Grimm at the Seattle Prostate Cancer Institute. Probably the most experienced in the US.
Posted 7/12/2011 12:44 PM (GMT 0)
Also look at Jeffrey Demanes MD at UCLA, Paul Y Song MD at Valley Radiotherapy in Santa Monica and West Hills, and Alexander R Gottschalk MD PhD at UC San Francisco. All appear to be well experienced, publish results, and publish studies. Demanes reports to have performed about 4,000 prostate brachytherapy treatments.
Posted 7/12/2011 11:34 PM (GMT 0)

Thanks Gentlemen:  Looks like there are 2 kinds of radiation, low dose and high dose, UCLA only does high dose.  Not sure which way to go, what is the difference?

Thanks Lisa

 

 

Partner:  Age 62

12/22/2010 -- PSA  - 8.6

1/18/2011 --- Biopsy - 1/10 core - positive - Tumor size less than 1 MM - Left Apex - Gleason  3+3=6

1/26/2011 --- Johns Hopkins confirmation report- positive-- Gleason  3+4=7

7/21/2011 ---Scheduled for robotic surgery - City of Hope.

Reconsidering Brachytherapy.

Posted 7/13/2011 2:28 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Lisa,   My husband is 5 months post Brachytherapy (‘seeds’) and doing really well, his diagnosis/numbers were similar to your partner’s.   I am certainly no expert on Brachytherapy but my understanding (in the UK anyway) is that LDR v HDR depends on how high risk the diagnosis is.   The statement below is taken from a Cancer Research UK research paper.     “Brachytherapy may be given by two very different techniques. Low dose rate (LDR) brachytherapy involves the permanent implantation of tiny radioactive seeds into the prostate to deliver a high radiation dose into the gland. High dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy requires fine catheters to be inserted into the prostate, through which a radioactive source is temporarily passed. Although the isotope used has a higher dose rate, the overall dose is lower than that given by LDR brachytherapy so it is usually given in conjunction with EBRT. This latter technique is much more recent, with limited clinical data, and is usually reserved for patients with high-risk disease. Possible side-effects include urinary symptoms and sexual dysfunction.”   Well done you looking out for your man!! x
Posted 7/13/2011 7:55 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks so much everyone.  Made the decision so much easier.  I hope we can help a new comer too!  Off to UCLA for consultation.

Lisa turn

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