Flipping body position to improve breast cancer radiation treatment
Breast cancer specialists at Ohio State University have turned radiation treatment upside down. Literally.
A modified treatment board in use at Ohio State’s Comprehensive Cancer Center – James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute in Columbus allows patients to lie in the prone position with breast tissue falling away from the chest wall. Compared with the traditional approach where women lie on their backs during radiation treatment, this new technique can help limit the potential for radiation damage to heart and lung tissue.
“The prone board allows gravity to pull the breast away from the chest wall, and create a more uniform shape that we can distribute the dose of radiation through evenly,” said Julia White, MD, director of breast radiation oncology at Ohio State's Stefanie Spielman Comprehensive Breast Center, in a press release. White helped develop the modified treatment board.
While traditional radiation therapy results in good cosmetic outcomes in 60-70 percent of cases, putting patients in the prone position boosts this rate to 80-90 percent, said White.
For more on the technique, check out the video from Ohio State below:
Evan joined TriMed in 2011, writing primarily for Health Imaging. Prior to diving into medical journalism, Evan worked for the Nine Network of Public Media in St. Louis. He also has worked in public relations and education. Evan studied journalism at the University of Missouri, with an emphasis on broadcast media.