Long-term Outcomes with Prostate Brachytherapy

Introduction

Brachytherapy refers to radiation treatment where radioactive material is placed adjacent to, or directly into, the tumor tissue. This is a surgical aspect of the Radiation Oncology speciality, and it requires additional training and expertise. 

Many tumor sites are treated with brachytherapy, including GYN, GI, breast, ocular melanoma, sarcoma, and penile cancer, as well as prostate cancer. Unlike in Europe and Canada, utilization of brachytherapy in the United States has decreased in recent years. The reasons may include the development of new technologies that do not require procedural expertise (e.g., SBRT), inadequate training, and/or inadequate remuneration. Yet we believe that brachytherapy is the most effective form of radiation treatment for prostate cancer.

In this series, we include presentations from the leading experts in the field of brachytherapy to discuss long-term disease outcomes, toxicity, socioeconomic issues, training, and new developments in the field.

Faculty

1. Mira Keyes, MD, FRCPC, FABS, British Columbia Cancer Agency (BCCA), Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
2. Steven J. Frank, MD, ​FABS, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas

3. Timothy N. Showalter, MD, MPH, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA

4. Brian J. Moran, MD, ​FABS, Chicago Prostate Center, Westmont, Illinois

5. Juanita M. Crook, MD, FRCPC, ​FABS, University of British Columbia, Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada

6. Michael J. Zelefsky, MD, ​FABS, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York

7. Peter F. Orio, III, DO, MS, ​FABS, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Milford, Massachusetts

8. Daniel Petereit, MD, FASTRO, ​FABS, Dakota West Radiation Oncology, Rapid City, South Dakota

9. Gerard Morton, MD, ​FABS, Odette Cancer Centre, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario