When you are faced with breast cancer it is important that you understand your treatment options including radiation therapy considered to be advanced cancer treatment options. Proton therapy is a type of radiation treatment that is truly unique. It can actually treat many stages of breast cancer offering patients revolutionary breast cancer care. It is a type of radiation that can stop at a specific point within targeted tissue unlike conventional radiation which continues well beyond a tumor. For breast cancer this means no radiation reaches the heart and on average 50% less radiation reaches the lungs when compared to conventional radiation.
Is Proton Therapy Right for You?
When it comes to advanced cancer treatment options it is imperative that you look at all of your choices. Cancer proton therapy precisely targets and delivers doses of high radiation to tumors that can kill cancerous cells. It could be especially beneficial to breast cancer patients since it minimizes damage to critical organs and nearby tissue.
The Benefits of Advanced Cancer Treatment Options
There are actually many benefits to advanced cancer treatment options like proton therapy for breast cancer patients. A major benefit includes being able to reduce both low and high doses of radiation when compared to other types of radiation including IMRT or 3D radiation planning. Protons provide the potential for reduced cosmetic side effects and long-term functional side effects from breast cancer treatments too.
Why Use Proton Therapy Centers?
When you choose to go to a proton therapy center to see a breast cancer specialist you are one step closer to a breast cancer cure. You will be introduced to advanced cancer treatment options and have a customized treatment plan created just for you. No matter what stage of breast cancer you may be in, whether you have had a mastectomy, the cancer has spread to lymph nodes or other body parts, or you have a large tumor, your physician will discuss proton therapy with you. Together you can take the steps needed to prevent breast cancer from returning.
How Is Proton Therapy Different?
Traditional radiation and proton therapy treatments both destroy tumors in the same manner. They damage DNA located inside cancer cells. Standard radiation uses X-ray waves of light that is high-energy called photons. The radiation is then sprinkled over a patient’s body as the waves move through them. This type of radiation does not stop once it has hit a tumor. It keeps on traveling well beyond a treatment area. This type of treatment is actually harmful to healthy body tissues.
Proton therapy is different in that it uses beams full of charged particles called protons that kill cancer. The protons are delivered directly to tumors where their cancer-fighting energy is focused. This type of radiation does not go beyond a target area. What this means for patients is that they are less likely to suffer from radiation damage to tissue near a tumor.
How Does Proton Therapy Help with Breast Cancer?
Essentially proton therapy helps in avoiding complications that traditional radiotherapy can cause such as heart disease. Other benefits include painless, non-invasive treatments that can also be used with other types of cancer treatments. It can even be used if you currently have breast implants. There are very few to absolutely no side effects for proton therapy. This is good news for patients that need breast cancer treatment.