New treatment helping to blast away tumors

Almost two million people will be diagnosed with cancer this year, and more than half of them will receive radiation.

Radiation is one of the best ways to control a tumor’s growth, but it can also come with some risks, including damaging nearby tissues and organs.

Now, a new targeted treatment is helping to blast away tumors and save more lives.

Diane Miller’s life changed dramatically when she was diagnosed with stage four liver cancer.

Radiation oncologist Andrew Frankart, from the University of Cincinnati, is the first in the country to lead a clinical trial that uses a new type of radiation targeting system to help patients like Diane.

“Right now, with radiation, we’re more restricted to moderate doses that can help relieve symptoms and provide a temporary effect but may not be sufficient dosing to provide a lasting impact or to control the tumor itself,” Frankart said.

Traditionally, the same dose of radiation targets the entire tumor. The new approach, called lattice therapy, can target higher doses of radiation to specific areas within the tumor.

“The difference with lattice therapy is it’s still using that arc to generate a plan, but we’re purposefully making spheres or circles of higher dose within the target,” Frankart said.

The higher dose means a higher chance of killing the cancer without hurting surrounding tissue.

Lattice therapy can be delivered with existing radiation machines.

The team now plans to test lattice therapy on patients with large tumors that have been resistant to other treatments.