A new study has found new radiation treatments for breast cancer. These new methods imply a different approach for radiations, with higher dosage of chemo but over shorter durations. Still, there are obvious obstacles in the way. Let’s see them.
Breast cancer is one of the worst type of cancer, and a serious threat to women worldwide. Besides the physical problems that develop, patients of breast cancer also go through emotional strains and have to deal with many difficulties.
This new study has found that whole breast radiation can be extremely effective. Yet, up until now, doctors were prescribing the treatment as if it were for any other type of cancer. Yet, like all things in nature, even diseases, while appearing in different areas of the body, obviously behave differently. And so it is with cancer.
Therefore, instead of painful and lengthy sessions of chemotherapy, which often are extremely traumatizing for those going through them, the new method implies short duration sessions. This means that the patients would receive a higher dose for whole breast radiation over a shorter time. This would essentially give much fewer side effects, while improving quality of life.
Recent studies point out that women who go through breast cancer radiation treatment have, surprisingly or not, a single priority: to care for their families. Besides this being a way for them to keep their families in good shape, it may also be a way of psychologically improving their own state.
Other studies show that keeping active while hit by illness is a way of maintaining a positive mental state, and it’s no secret that that keeps the body fighting against the disease. Maintaining the status quo is one of the most recommended treatments to any disease, from psychological point of view.
The doctors behind this current study warn that, in the US, just about one third of the patients suffering from breast cancer that should receive hypofractioned whole breast irradiation actually do. The correct research was done on a group of 300 women above 40 years old who had early stages of cancer (0-2). They were randomly chosen for either one of the treatment and then the results were compared.
The higher dose lower-time group had fewer episodes of breast pain, skin darkening, eczema or fatigue. After six months after the test and treatment, the results were the same.
This goes to show that while we may know how to go about treating cancer, there is still a lot to learn about the exact method to be attributed to each cancer type.
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