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Joined: 9/24/2009
Posts: 3
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Hello.
We have been liaising with a number of CyberKnife centres to try to get an answer on the effectivenessof treatment for my mother's secondary cancer.
We are in the UK and have not been helped by the London centre at all. We directed our enquiries to the Turkey Centre and they did help but left a few open questions which they could not answer and I hope you can.
My mother has secondary breast cancer in the sacrum bone itself nearer the hip joint but not too far from the bottom of the spine.
The Opinion we have had so far is that Cyberknife could be used. Then we were told it can not be used. Then we were finally told it could only be used after conventional radiotherapy treatment. This is confusing to say the least.
Anyway, when we enquired why only after conventional radiotherapy we got the answer that the benefits of conventional radiotherapy were the same as CyberKnife and the side effects were minimal or none when applied to the bone.
This confused us more. Firstly, Cyberknife is supposed to be more accurate and hence no side effects as it does not target surrounding "good" tissue/bone.Conventional radiotherapy is more local so would increase side effects as it hits surrounding tissue.
Can you confirm this is true?
Also we thought the reason that CyberKnife was not applied was because the tumour is in the bone and somehow it might compromise the blood supply or the bone itself, possibly destroying the bone and weakening the skeleton stucture at such a crucial point. This is what we thought, but then the doctors said we could use it after conventional radiotherapy treatment so we got confused.
Does it compromise or destroy the bone if applied to the precise region?
If not, then why can it not be used first before conventional radiotherapy?
Maybe you can help clarify this confusion and help us understand what and what is not possible with Cyberknife on this type of cancer.
Please let me know if you require any additional information.
Thank you and I look forward eagerly with your response as soon as possible.
Regards
Milan
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Joined: 10/10/2008
Posts: 2354
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Let me guess - you are seeing multiple doctors. Tha virtually guarantees different opinions.
That area can easily be treated with CK, but at least in the USA we usually use standard radiation first because insurance companies usually won't pay for CK unless the patient has failed standard radiation. The cancer weakens the bone, and radiation may eventually help that, but it may take a couple of years. Radiation can also weaken bones, but it does not matter what type. That issue has nothing to do with the decision.
Clinton A. Medbery, III, M.D.
St. Anthony Hospital Cyberknife Center
(405) 272-7311
buddy@swrads.org
Mail to:
Clinton A. Medbery, III, M.D.
Southwest Radiation Oncology
1011 N. Dewey Ave. #101
Oklahoma City, OK 73102
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Joined: 9/24/2009
Posts: 3
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Thank you for the response.
We have got the different opinions from the same hospital in Turkey. We found the London clinic not very helpful.
We were considering private treatment that is not connected to an insurance company.
Could you clarify your last few sentences please. I did not fully understand.
Are you saying that yes CK can treat the area. But there is a risk that the bone could be weakened? Or are you saying that CK can help the recovery of the bone from the cancer once treated.
In this case which is better - standard radiation or CK in your opinion.
Thank you.
Milan
Milan
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Joined: 10/10/2008
Posts: 2354
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Radiation can potentially weaken bone, but that is probably not a big issue. Radiation can also destroy tumor cells, and they weaken bone, so radiation can also strengthen bone in some circumstances. This is not an issue you should be seriously concerned with and should focus more on what is best for the cancer. CK is quite effective in this regard, but so is standard radiation. If you are in the UK then I would get the standard radiation which will not be expensive to you. If it fails, then you can still use CK.
Clinton A. Medbery, III, M.D.
St. Anthony Hospital Cyberknife Center
(405) 272-7311
buddy@swrads.org
Mail to:
Clinton A. Medbery, III, M.D.
Southwest Radiation Oncology
1011 N. Dewey Ave. #101
Oklahoma City, OK 73102
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Joined: 9/24/2009
Posts: 3
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Thank you for the clarification. That has helped a lot. We will discuss this with the family and if we have any further questions, I will post back.
Otherwise, Thank you again.
Regards
Milan
Milan
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