Selective Internal Radiation Therapy (SIRT): SIR-Spheres

A New Treatment for Inoperable Liver Cancer

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Michael Garofalo, M.D.

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Note: This is for informational purposes only. Our doctors cannot provide a diagnosis via e-mail.

The University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center (UMGCC) in Baltimore is performing a new treatment for inoperable liver cancer known as Selective Internal Radiation Therapy (SIRT).

SIRT is a non-surgical outpatient therapy that uses microscopic radioactive spheres, called SIR-Spheres®, to deliver radiation directly to the site of the liver tumors. This unique, targeted therapy spares healthy tissue while delivering up to 40 times more radiation to the liver tumors than would be possible using conventional radiotherapy.

Our physicians are very experienced at using microscopic beads to treat inoperable liver cancer. UMGCC was the first in the nation to successfully perform TheraSphere -- which used microscopic glass beads to deliver radiation to liver tumors -- in 2000. SIR-Spheres, developed by the Australian firm Sirtex Medical and approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2002 for patients with primary colorectal cancer that has spread to the liver, are the latest of a wide range of liver-directed therapies we offer to best meet our patients' needs.

Our multidisciplinary team of gastrointestinal malignancy specialists hold weekly conferences to review and/or determine the best treatment for our patients. This team includes surgeons, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, radiologists, nuclear medicine physicians and pathologists.

Our Liver Directed Therapies Program includes a full array of treatment options for patients with primary/metastatic liver disease. In addition to SIRT and traditional surgical, chemotherapeutic or radiation approaches, these treatment options include:

These microscopic radioactive beads, called SIR-Spheres®, deliver radiation directly to the tumor site while sparing surrounding tissue.

While treatment with SIR-Spheres®, is generally not regarded as a cure, it has been shown to shrink liver cancer more than chemotherapy alone. This can increase patients' life expectancy and improve their quality of life.

Learn more about SIRT by clicking on any of the links below:

For more information, please contact Rosemary Wilson at 410-328-7904.