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Brachy Therapy Christiana Care Experience
Bruce N Benge
Christiana Care, Wilmington, DE
Introduction
Christianacare is one of the largest medical centers on the East Coast and the
only institution currently offering Brachytherapy in Delaware. We have treated
close to 1400 patients since we initiated our program in 1998. We report five
year data on our first 700 patients.
Methods
We performed a retrospective analysis on close to 700 patients treated
with brachytherapy at our institution beginning in 1998. Patient groups were
divided into the MSKCC risk groups of low risk , intermediate ,and high
risk groups. In some patients a combination of external radiation
and brachytherapy was used. Preprograming utilizing the Variseed
program was used in all patients after the first 300.
Results
Utilizing the ASTRO consensus of nadir + 2 we have an NED rate of
93% for 426 low risk patients, 82% NED for 190 intermediate risk
patients, and 92% NED for 78 high risk patients. Local versus
distant recurrence rates are reported. We had a very low morbidity
rate when compared to other series with no fistulas and a post
op retention rate requiring an invasive procedure of less than 2%.
Conclusion
This report of a large patient population from a single institution indicates
that Brachytherapy is a very effective treatment for localized prostate
cancer. It further shows the procedure can have a very low morbidity rate.
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