Is LDR brachytherapy right for me?

 

LDR brachytherapy delivers radiation treatment in a very localised and targeted manner using tiny radioactive seeds of Iodine-125, each about the size of a grain of rice. These are inserted permanently into the prostate gland.

 

It is a minimally invasive treatment with significant quality of life benefits over alternative treatments such as surgery and externally delivered radiotherapy.

 

Seed brachytherapy benefits:

• Same-day or overnight procedure

• Low side-effects

• Rapid return to normal activities

 

A study* of over 52,000 patients who had undergone different treatments for prostate cancer demonstrated that the progression-free survival was longest for Low Dose Rate (LDR) Brachytherapy patients. Read more about the PCRSG study.

 

For more information we encourage you to discuss LDR Brachytherapy with your oncologist (cancer expert), urologist (expert on the urinary system) or specialist nurse.

 

 

*Prostate Cancer Results Study Group, available at (last accessed July 2016)

On this page:

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• Brachytherapy side effects

• Treatment selector chart

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Patient quick links:

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• What is LDR brachytherapy?

• How does LDR brachytherapy compare?

• Brachytherapy treatment centres

• Frequently asked questions