A new form of radiation treatment may reduce or remove the need for surgery for patients with early-stage breast cancer, reports The Baltimore Sun.
The GammaPod, approved for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in December, delivers strong doses of radiation more precisely to tumors. Doctors said it will not only reduce the number of radiation treatments a patient may need but will zap the cancer so thoroughly that there may be nothing left for surgeons to tackle.
“We believe this novel radiotherapy system has the potential to change the paradigm for treating early-stage tumors, negating the need for surgery in some patients,” said Dr. William F. Regine, chair and professor of radiation oncology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and a co-inventor of the GammaPod with Cedric Yu, a clinical professor of radiation oncology at the university.
Get the full story at The Baltimore Sun.
