Less Radiation is Equally Effective in Fighting Benign Brain Tumor while Saving Hearing
Administering less radiation than usual is just as effective against a benign but potential devastating brain tumor called an acoustic schwannoma and might save more of the patient’s hearing.
Such were the recent findings of radiation oncologists at the Kimmel Cancer Center at Thomas Jefferson University and Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia.
Acoustic schwannoma is a slow-growing tumor that develops in the vestibular nerve that lies very close to the auditory or hearing nerve.
Acoustic schwannoma’s most common symptom is hearing loss so that when left untreated could lead to severe hearing loss. The only way to remove this tumor is by surgery, however, tricky and can potentially damage surrounding cranial nerves.
Treating the tumor with radiation is usually effective, less risky, and the vast majority of tumors do not grow back, says Maria Werner-Wasik, M.D., associate professor of radiation oncology at Jefferson.
However, higher doses of radiation carry some risks of hearing damage as well. Therefore, the Kimmel Cancer Center team investigated whether lower doses would work just as well by comparing two groups among 115 patients with acoustic schwannomas treated at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital between 1994 and 2005.
Study results were reported on November 7, 2006 at the annual meeting of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology in Philadelphia.
Find more details from the press release.
Tags: acoustic-schwannoma, brain-tumor, radiation-therapyRelated Stories
POSTED IN: on brain cancer, on cancer diagnostics
0 opinions for Less Radiation is Equally Effective in Fighting Benign Brain Tumor while Saving Hearing
No one has left a comment yet. You know what this means, right? You could be first!
Have an opinion? Leave a comment: