When treating cancer, each patient is truly unique. In order to find the appropriate treatment option, physicians must consider the type of cancer, how the cancer has spread and how the individual patient physically responds to different forms of treatment. For health care providers, treating cancer requires a comprehensive approach – as every patient is different.
SSM Health DePaul Hospital – St. Louis has recently been approved to begin offering the Y90 therapy for patients with liver cancer. By offering this therapy at a community hospital, SSM Health is expanding the number of options that patients have closer to their homes.
“We have seen a track record for success with this treatment, and we have been able to offer it at hospitals like SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital,” said Dr. Robert Fischer, an interventional radiology specialist with SSM Health. “Bringing this treatment to a community hospital helps us make this treatment more readily available and easier to access for patients.”
The Y90 therapy is one that is used for patients who have an inoperable liver cancer. The therapy uses tiny beads that are injected through a small catheter.
“This method allows the radiation to be spread from the inside of the tumor,” Dr. Fischer said. “That radiation preferentially concentrates in the tumor and spares much of the normal liver tissue around it.”While the therapy is not a cure for cancer, it has proven to prolong the lives of patients in a manner that is minimally invasive and has few side effects.
“Every patient is a little different, and everyone reacts uniquely to any cancer treatment,” Dr. Fischer said. “However, we have seen much success with patients for whom Y90 is appropriate.”
The Y90 therapy is another option for the SSM Health team to use in providing exceptional care throughout the community. Learn more about treating liver cancer and other types of cancers by visiting our website.
