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HDR brachytherapy question

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Prostate Cancer
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Posted 1/23/2013 7:50 PM (GMT 0)
I am leaning toward this as my treatment and wondered what sort of proficiency is required by a hospital to do them? I read that with surgery we want a surgeon who has close to 1000 under his belt but with HDR brachytherapy what is the number or is it a different animal altogether?

I would guess with seeds it is also a matter of the skill of the person doing the implant but with HDR brachytherapy what is the standard?

Thanks.
Posted 1/24/2013 5:02 AM (GMT 0)
I don't know the specific answer in terms of a number, but having just completed HDR brachytherapy, I do believe your premise is correct. There was so much fine tuning that went on all around me, I'd have to believe an experienced team would be best.

I was also acutely aware of what little margins there are in the process. The prostate is only so big and if those 17 tubes aren't precisely in the right place with precisely the right amount of radiation, you're setting up yourself up for failure or increased side effects. (I realize that other treatments for PC need just as much precision.)

Good luck to you and if you do land on this as your treatment of choice, go for the most experienced team around.

Michael
Posted 1/24/2013 6:02 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks. Appreciate it.
Posted 1/24/2013 12:09 PM (GMT 0)
Buddy,
Results with brachy (HDR or LDR) can vary as well. I studied long and hard before making a decision on where to go for my treatment. Your goal is to get the PC treatment right the first time. I wound up at the Schifler Cancer Center in Wheeling, WVA wit Dr. Merrick. I couldn't be happier. My choice was LDR, don't know if they do HDR.
God Bless you, Brother.
Posted 1/24/2013 12:28 PM (GMT 0)
I was one of the first on this board to have HDR and since several more have done so. My doctor team (uro and rad-onc) had done about 1,000 together and they do 4-6 per week. It was all very routine for them and their staff. I want experience, but I don't know what the threshold is. What is the stated experience of the doctors you are assessing? Where are you located? Do you have multiple choices for clinics you can consider?
Posted 1/24/2013 8:12 PM (GMT 0)
Midwest near Chicago.
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