October 15, 2012
St.Vincent Offers New Treatment for Liver Cancer
INDIANAPOLIS - St.Vincent is now offering a new treatment for patients who have metastatic liver cancer – cancer that initially started in another organ but has spread to the liver. The faith-based hospital is now providing the availability of SIR-Spheres® microspheres, for patients whose tumors are not able to be surgically removed. SIR-Spheres microspheres are the only fully FDA-approved microspheres for metastatic liver cancer that can be used to deliver targeted, internal radiation therapy directly to the tumor.
Metastatic liver cancer is often fatal, with up to 90 percent of patients dying from liver failure. Microspheres therapy has emerged as a treatment option for patients with colorectal, breast, endometrial, stomach and pancreatic cancers that have spread to the liver.
As a minimally invasive treatment, performed as an outpatient procedure, millions of radioactive SIR-Spheres microspheres are infused via a catheter into the liver where they selectively target liver tumors. The dosage of the internal radiation is up to 40 times higher than conventional radiotherapy - while sparing healthy tissue.
Clinical trials have confirmed that patients with metastatic colorectal cancer treated with SIR-Spheres microspheres have response rates higher than with other forms of treatment, resulting in increased life expectancy, greater periods without tumor activity and improved quality of life. Selective Internal Radiation Therapy has been found to shrink liver tumors more than chemotherapy alone.
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St.Vincent Hospitals and Health Services
Driven by the faith of four Daughters of Charity who arrived in Indianapolis in 1881 with $34.77 in their pockets, the St.Vincent Hospital mission is to treat the poor and sick by following our Core Values of Service of the Poor, Reverence, Integrity, Wisdom, Creativity and Dedication. Our healthcare ministry has grown to include seven Centers of Excellence: Women's, Children's, Orthopedics, Cardiovascular, Neuroscience, Cancer Care and Bariatrics. The ageless mission of St.Vincent remains unchanged: to minister to the minds, bodies and spirits of those in need.
For more information contact:
Jennifer Dial
St.Vincent Health
Public Relations Consultant
(317) 583-4031 (office)
jkdial@stvincent.org