Posted by PinkRibbonAmy on 8/22/2005, 5:47 pm, in reply to "New Info" I found this online for you: Internal Radiation In some cases, your doctor may recommend brachytherapy. Also called internal radiation, brachytherapy involves placing radioactive material into a tumor or its surrounding tissue. During bronchoscopy, one or two thin plastic tubes called catheters will be placed down your nose and into the airways of the lung. Internal radiation therapy (also called brachytherapy) uses radiation that is placed very close to or inside the tumor. The radiation source is usually sealed in a small holder called an implant. Implants may be in the form of thin wires, plastic tubes called catheters, ribbons, capsules, or seeds. The implant is put directly into the body. Internal radiation therapy may require a hospital stay. Internal radiation is usually delivered in one of two ways, each of which is described below. Both methods use sealed implants. Interstitial radiation therapy is inserted into tissue at or near the tumor site. It is used to treat tumors of the head and neck, prostate, cervix, ovary, breast, and perianal and pelvic regions. Some women treated with external radiation for breast cancer receive a "booster dose" of radiation that may use interstitial radiation or external radiation. Intracavitary or intraluminal radiation therapy is inserted into the body with an applicator. It is commonly used in the treatment of uterine cancer. Researchers are also studying these types of internal radiation therapy for other cancers, including breast, bronchial, cervical, gallbladder, oral, rectal, tracheal, uterine, and vaginal. Systemic radiation therapy uses radioactive materials such as iodine 131 and strontium 89. The materials may be taken by mouth or injected into the body. Systemic radiation therapy is sometimes used to treat cancer of the thyroid and adult non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Researchers are investigating agents to treat other types of cancer.
Link: DrAmy.net
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I'm sorry that the news about your dad isn't better. I'm sure you've got a lot of mixed feelings being at school with all this going on.
I've heard some wonderful things about the radiation seed. My friend's mother had that, I think. I'll ask her for you. I believe her mom had to have strong radiation twice a day for five days, and then she had the seed thing removed. She got tired, but that was the only side effect.
The tube or tubes are then connected to a brachytherapy machine. This holds the radioactive source, which is in the form of a ribbon with radioactive seeds. Your doctor slides the ribbon into the tube in your lung so the seeds are next to the tumor.
The ribbon will be left in place from a few minutes to a few days.
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