I am 51. SIRT sounds good, but I still can't find any stats that are good as far as response rate. I found 20%, but then a Dr. told me it was more than 35%, or even more than 50%.
Does anyone know how well SIRT works? It seems that large
tumors don't matter, it still works on them. I do not have any other choice, since my tumors are not vascular enough for embolization, and I have too many for RFA. On March 10th my left lobe had a 10cm tumor, but now it is March 29th and I can feel my upper ab is much larger. My doctor told me today, I most likely have tumor progression weekly. I must do something ASAP, but it seems I still have to wait a week from the angiogram, till getting SIRT.
On 3/28/2007 Redriots12 wrote:
My husband had SIR spheres treatment done Feb. 28. He had multiple tumors in both lobes, chemoembolization was not considered a good option, RFA due to the number of tumors was not an option. He went through FOLFOX plus Avastin plus Vectibix, stopped Vectibix due to rash after 9 rounds, stopped oxaliplatin after 12 rounds due to neuropathy. 5FU and Avastin stopped working after about 9months (last September) Erbitux and Irinotecan(cpt 11) never really seemed to work. The CT scan in Jan 07 showed the tumors in his liver were starting to grow. So, like you, we felt action had to be taken. He will have a followup PET scan April 10 so I can't tell you his results but the results from research show a much higher percentage of response than treatment with chemo at this stage. Close to 90% stable /no progression or reduction in tumors. (I don't have the exact stats in front of me for those 2 categories). We only had 2 options for treatment - clinical trials or SIR spheres. He had about 50% of his liver involved with tumors so was right on the edge for acceptance but his liver function was the best they had seen so he was the 15th person treated at Mass General in Boston, received the highest dosage of radiation they had given. The theory behind SIR treatment makes sense - they go through the femoral artery right to the hepatic artery to zap the tumors. The liver is an unusual organ - tumors feed off the hepatic artery, healthy liver feeds of another blood vessel . This is also why hepatic artery pump works. SIR spheres are attracted to the higher rate of blood flow which is how blood flows to rapidly growing cancer cells. There are many qualifying tests that are done before the procedure is even done to determine many factors including the individualized calculated radiation dose you will receive. The threat to the healthy liver is incredibly minimal - one radiologist told me systemic chemo destroys healthy as well as tumor liver cells. The biggest side effect of SIR is fatigue which usually subsides after the first week or two. You start taking Prilosec before treatment. One week before the SIR treatment is done, an angiogram is done to map out your arteries, another scan is done using milk albumin which mimics the SIR treatment. SIR (selective internal radiation) is commonly done in Texas and the midwest, does not seem to be done as frequently in the Northeast. I say GO FOR IT! Your disease has to be predominantly in the liver to qualify for treatment. They did treat both lobes of my husbands liver at the same time. The interventional radiologist who did the procedure - Dr. Sanjeeva Kalva - was wonderful. Another procedure that is being done at NIH and now at the University of Pittsburgh is "isolated liver perfusion" - my husband did not qualify for that due to a filter that was placed in his inferior vena cavae to block clots. You must also have predominantly liver disease for that. Do not lose hope - new technololgy is happening everywhere. Good luck, if your insurance will not cover SIR treatment, fight for it - we filed appeals, etc and did get coverage. The SIR people have a person whose job is to help people get coverage - she was great. Sorry to ramble, but I understand where you are coming from and the urgency for you to get treatment. How old are you? My husband is now 49, diagnosed at 47. Hang in there and keep fighting.