BREAST cancer patients in Bunbury now have access to new technology which can minimise the impact to the heart caused by radiation treatment.
Deep Inspiration Breath Hold is a technology being trialed at Perth Radiation Oncology by radiologists Dr Margaret Latham and Dr Yvonne Zissiadis, operated by Genesis CancerCare.
Radiation Oncology Centre Bunbury Dr Siddhartha Baxi said the technology applied to left sided breast cancers where the heart sat right up against the breast.
Mr Baxi said the trial started in Perth this month and would be brought to the Bunbury Radiation Oncology Centre once the protocol had been tested.
He said he had already referred a patient to Perth for treatment.
“It is still a year or so away from coming to Bunbury – we really need to make sure we use it well and use it safely,” Mr Baxi said.
He said in the last 30 to 40 years they have seen the consequences of unnecessary radiation damage the heart.
Mr Baxi said one in 50 patients would have their heart affected by the radiotherapy because of their own anatomy and where the heart sat.
Before the machine is used they will take a CT scan of the patient’s heart to see where it sits and if the patient requires the Deep Inspiration Breath Hold Technology.
“The patient takes a deep breath in through a nozzle which can measure the patient’s chest expanding and when the patient’s chest has expanded to a certain point the machine will turn on,” Dr Baxi said.
“The imaging device is talking to the machine and talking to the patient – it is a bit of an internal device and when the patient breathes out the machine turns off.
Dr Zissiadis said the treatment provided a significant clinical advancement and also offered psychological benefits.
“The knowledge that this risk is significantly reduced or removed can help relieve the anxiety that some patients experience,” she said.