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 Kathleen Ruddy, M.D., Medical Director of the Breast Service at Clara Maass Medical Center (center), reviews X-rays of Josephine Carugan (left) with Corinne Devereux, M.D., Medical Director of Radiation Oncology at Clara Maass. Mrs. Carugan, of Nutley, is the first patient at Clara Maass to use a promising new radiation technology for breast cancer.
BELLEVILLE, N.J. - Clara Maass Medical Center is now one of only a few hospitals in the nation to use a new partial breast irradiation method intended to shorten the treatment time for some women with breast cancer.
MammoSite® technology, approved by the FDA in May, most closely resembles conventional brachytherapy, a form of radiation therapy that places a radioactive source within the tumor tissue, thus providing a high dose of radiation directly to the tumor while minimizing radiation exposure to surrounding healthy tissue. This new protocol enables women to receive treatment with results comparable to that of conventional breast cancer treatment and mastectomy.
It is estimated that in 2002, approximately 257,800 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer, with 81 percent detected in an early stage. Standard breast conservation therapy for early-stage breast cancer patients usually involves a lumpectomy in combination with external beam radiation therapy ( involving no internal radioactive source) and visits for radiation therapy five days a week for five to seven weeks. In some parts of the country, approximately 50 percent of women choose mastectomy instead of lumpectomy/ radiation therapy combination because there is no radiation therapy facility within driving distance. The new MammoSite technology offers women about the same long-term outcome as a mastectomy, but with a more cosmetically pleasing result.
At Clara Maass, the new technology is being used to administer what radiation oncologists call "a boost." After undergoing lumpectomy, and before receiving five weeks of external beam radiation, patients will receive about two days of a MammoSite - administered boost to target and strengthen their radiation regimen. The patient process is conducted on a outpatient basis and usually begins during the lumpectomy procedure.
Under an anesthetic, a deflated balloon is placed inside the tumor cavity that was created during the lumpectomy. A tube connected to the balloon remains outside the breast as a catheter. The balloon is then filled with a saline solution and remains filled throughout the duration of the radiation therapy. The patient goes home and returns to the Radiation Oncology Department in a day or so, where a radioactive "seed" is inserted inside the inflated balloon. For patients receiving the boost, just one to two days of radiation will be administered in this fashion, followed by traditional radiation therapy. At the conclusion of therapy, the balloon is deflated and the balloon and catheter are removed on an outpatient basis.
"This is the most important advance in the treatment of breast cancer in the past five years," says Kathleen Ruddy, M.D., Medical Director of the Breast Service at Clara Maass Medical Center. "The MammoSite allows more women with early stage breast cancer to save their breast, have effective treatment and reduce their treatment time."
Dr. Ruddy has already used the MammoSite technology to treat one of her patients, 74-year-old Josephine Carugan of Nutley, who was grateful to have the MammoSite as a treatment option and confident that the outcome will be positive. Dr. Ruddy, along with Corinne Devereux, M.D., Medical Director of Radiation Oncology, are encouraged by the results from trials which suggest that brachytherapy is an effective method of treating breast cancer.
"This method provides an outstanding alternative for women with early stage breast cancer who may not be able to come for treatment over a long period of time, or who cannot withstand it. And it can be offered to patients who otherwise would have had to have a mastectomy," Dr. Devereux says.
Patients should inquire about the new technology with their breast surgeon or radiation oncologist. Dr. Ruddy notes that among the criteria making women eligible for this technology are the geometric shape and location of the tumor. For further information, call the Radiation Oncology Department at Clara Maass Medical Center, (973) 450-2270 or Dr. Ruddy at (973) 450-2710.
Clara Maass Medical Center, an affiliate of the Saint Barnabas Health Care System, provides a complete continuum of care to residents of northern New Jersey. Located in Belleville, Clara Maass offers acute care services through Clara Maass Medical Center; skilled, rehabilitative care through the Continuing Care Center at Belleville; assisted living and long-term care through the Continuing Care Center at Kearny; home health care through JerseyCare Home Health; and diagnostic radiology services through Progressive Imaging Center.
Other centers of medical excellence include the Women's Health Center, nuclear medicine, The Cancer Center, diagnostic cardiac services including cardiac catheterization and rehabilitation, The Clara Maass Wound Center, the Pain Management Center, the Orthopedic Spine & Joint Institute, same day surgery, and maternal/child health programs. For more information on Clara Maass programs and services, please call 1-800-CLARA MAASS or to take a virtual tour of the Medical Center, visit www.saintbarnabas.com.
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