Dr. Cavey provides expert care in IMRT photon therapy, and he is constantly reviewing new research findings on both IMRT photon therapy and proton therapy, to ensure he is delivering patient care at the highest standards.
Based on the newest findings released on September 30, 2024 from the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO), people with low- and intermediate-risk prostate cancer treated with either of two types of contemporary radiation therapy — proton beam therapy or intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) — achieved equally high rates of tumor control with no differences in patient-reported quality of life.
These results were from a first-of-its-kind phase III clinical trial comparing the two technologies. Findings of the PARTIQoL trial were presented at the ASTRO Annual Meeting.
Dr. Cavey notes that proton therapy is 2 -4x more expensive than IMRT photon therapy while not having a higher efficacy for low- and intermediate-risk patients.
In the ASTRO report, one of the study contributors, Dr. Efstathiou said, “We can use either of these tools with comparably excellent outcomes. There have been so many advances in the delivery of contemporary radiation — such as the incorporation of scanned and modulated beams and in-room imaging — that I think the potential gaps between these technologies have narrowed over time.”
If you have further questions about IMRT photon therapy, please talk with Dr. Cavey to learn more.