What is Vascular Brachytherapy?

Vascular brachytherapy is a new, state-of-the-art treatment that helps prevent re-stenosis, or re-clogging, of blood vessels after treatment with angioplasty and stent.

Vessels that supply blood to the heart can become clogged, which may lead to a heart attack. A common treatment, known as balloon angioplasty, involves inserting a thin tube into the vessel and inflating a small balloon to reopen the artery. Often, a wire, mesh-life tube (stent) is placed in the artery to help keep it open.

Up to 25 percent of patients who receive angioplasty and stents will suffer from "in-stent re-stenosis," a condition in which the stent becomes clogged with new tissue growth, causing symptoms to return. An estimated 150,000 patients each year experience in-stent re-stenosis.

Without other treatment options, patients with re-stenosis often require bypass surgery, vascular brachytherapy helps prevent the need for surgery by using a small dose of radiation to inhibit new tissue growth and reduce re-stenosis.

• The type of radiation used in this procedure penetrates only a few millimeters into body tissues, resulting in minimal radiation exposure for the patient.
• The radiation source remains in the body for just three to five minutes and is completely withdrawn once treatment is finished.
• The procedure adds only about ten minutes to total angioplasty time.
• Vascular brachytherapy has been shown to reduce the incidence of re-stenosis by 66 percent. This reflects an overall 34 percent reduction in the need for additional procedures, such as bypass surgery or further angioplasties.

Only your doctor can tell you if you might benefit from vascular brachytherapy. However, if you have questions about the procedure – for example, how it is performed or how it helps prevent re-stenosis – please contact us at 812/464-9133.

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