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Brachytherapy is a type of internal radiation treatment...
where we place radioactive sources inside the cancer.
So unlike radiotherapy from the outside, Or external beam radiotherapy,
the radiotherapy moves from the inside of the tumor to the outside of the tumor.
That allows us to give a very high dose of radiotherapy over a very short distance...
treating the cancer, but sparing the surrounding normal tissue.
It can either be permanent or a temporary implant.
Permanent implants for example, are most commonly used in prostate brachytherapy.
Temporary implants are most commonly used in gynaecological cancers.
So brachytherapy can be used to treat gynaecological cancers...
In particular *** cancer, endometrial cancer, *** or vaginal cancer,
Most commonly ***.
It can be used to treat prostate cancer.
And those are the commonest areas that it is used to treat.
But in addition, increasingly used to treat breast cancer...
*** cancer, *** cancer, oesophageal cancer...
Head and neck cancer, skin cancers, and...
Sometimes some cancers around the eye as well.
The advantage of having brachytherapy is it’s often done in a relatively short period of time.
It can often be targeted to the cancer...
So therefore you can get a high dose of radiotherapy to the actual cancer and...
It often means we can limit the dose to surrounding structures...
Compared to, say, external beam radiotherapy.
The toxicity with brachytherapy is often less compared to external beam radiotherapy or compared to surgery...
wWhich may be the other alternatives in terms of treatment.
I think one of the disadvantages for patients is that they don’t understand brachytherapy.
So many patients are actually somewhat apprehensive or scared of the treatment.
When they actually have the treatment they realize it’s not difficult treatment...
It’s less difficult than many other treatments.
But I think that it’s difficult because it’s overcoming that fear and apprehension of patients.
So if a patient wants to find out more about brachytherapy...
I would suggest that they need to talk to their treating oncologist...
And find out if brachytherapy is an option in their treatment.
Either in combination with another treatment, such as surgery...
Or more commonly external beam radiotherapy, or as an alternative treatment.
Quite often, unfortunately brachytherapy might not be appropriate for that patient...
But at least if they ask the question that could be something that the treating clinician could consider...
And again may want to discuss with their colleagues to see if it’s appropriate.