- May 4, 2024
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+ New breast cancer treatment protects lungs and hearts from radiation exposure
Florida Hospital Flagler now offers a new technique for breast cancer patients that reduces the radiation exposure to the lungs and heart.
It is called Prone Breast Board radiation therapy, and is unique in that patients lay on their stomachs with their breasts suspended, isolating the breasts and significantly decreasing the radiation exposure to the lungs and heart.
In traditional approaches to breast cancer radiation, patients lay on their backs. In some patients, this can inadvertently cause radiation damage to the lungs and heart while treating tumors in the breasts. This damage is concerning because it increases a patient’s overall risk for lung and heart disease.
The March edition of the New England Journal of Medicine published a study that indicates that breast cancer patients treated with radiation therapy while lying on their backs are at higher risk for coronary artery disease. This is because chest radiation treatment can damage lining of blood vessels that supply the heart and to the heart itself, leading to coronary artery disease, which can lead to heart attack. The same holds true for the lungs.
Now, with Florida Hospital Flagler’s new approach to treating breast cancer, the increased risk of lung and heart damage, and the subsequent development of lung and heart disease, is significantly decreased, hospital officials say.
+ Local hires
Sally Myers, of Palm Coast, has become an independent consultant with Tastefully Simple Inc., a national direct sales company that features more than 60 easily prepared foods.
Local awards
• Richard J. DeCeglie, CRS, of Watson Realty Corporation’s Palm Coast Office, was recognized as the top listing agent for July.
• Richard Lapadula, a real estate agent with Coldwell Banker Premier Properties, has earned the certified senior specialist designation and the certified property management specialist designation.
