Natural Health October 2017

SPECIAL
There are 2 types of radiation therapy
treatment for breast cancer offered in
SunMed:
1) Intraoperative
radiotherapy (IORT)
Intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT) is
a procedure to treat breast cancer during
surgery by delivering a concentrated
dose of radiation therapy to a tumour
bed, which are the tissues surrounding
the cancer.
It is used during a lumpectomy, a
breast conservation surgery while the
patient is still in the operating room and
unconscious. The miniaturised radiation
device is inserted in the lumpectomy cavity
after the tumour has been removed.
This customisable form of radiation
therapy helps kill microscopic disease,
reduce the amount of time of radiation
treatment and provide an added
radiation "boost" to generate a more
positive outcome for the surgery.
2) External beam
radiotherapy (EBRT)
External beam radiation is one of
the most common types of radiation
therapy used for cancer treatment. EBRT
delivers high-energy rays to tumours
using a special X-ray machine called a
linear accelerator.
The machine scans the body, and
emitting high dose of radiation that could
be delivered from any angle and shapes
the radiation beam to the contour
of the tumour.
This specialised focus will do less
damage to normal tissues while it
destroys cancerous cells and shrinks
tumours. Examples of EBRT include
3D conformal radiation therapy, IMRT,
IGRT, TomoTherapy and stereotactic
radiosurgery.
Hormone Therapy for
Breast Cancer
Certain types of cancer are affected by
hormones in the blood. These hormones
attach to special proteins called hormone
receptors. These hormone receptors,
estrogen receptor-positive (ER-positive)
and/or progesterone receptor-positive
(PR-positive) help the cancer cells grow.
All tumours are checked for hormone
receptors by testing the tissue that was
removed during a biopsy.
Hormone therapies are often used to treat
hormone receptor-positive breast cancers.
It slows down or stops the growth of
hormone receptor-positive tumours by
preventing the cancer cells from getting
the hormones they need to grow. It can
also be used to treat cancer that relapses
after treatment or that have spread to
other parts of the body. As it is a form of
systemic therapy, it could reach cancer
cells in any part of the body and not just
in the breast.
Chemotherapy for
Breast Cancer
Chemotherapy is a treatment that uses
drugs to kill cancer cells. It may be
injected into the vein or taken orally. The
drug travels through the bloodstream to
reach cancer cells in most parts of the
body. Chemotherapy does not apply to
all breast cancer cases apart from certain
conditions that require this method.
• Before surgery (neoadjuvant
chemotherapy)
Neoadjuvant chemo is given before
the surgery takes place. It aims to
shrink the tumour so that it can be
removed with less extensive surgery.
• After surgery (adjuvant chemotherapy)
Adjuvant chemo is used after surgery
to try to eradicate any cancer cells
that may have been left behind or
spread but can't be detected, even on
imaging tests.
• For advanced breast cancer
Chemo is normally used as the main
method of treatment for women whose
cancer has spread outside the breast
and underarm area.
What Happens After a
Successful Treatment?
The dreaded part is over and there is a
huge sense of relief. You give yourself
a pat on the back for being a cancer
survivor. However, chances of the cancer
coming back are always there. It is wise
to go for follow-up visits to ensure that
you are cancer-free.
Natural Health * October 2017 VOL 84
29