Seven years ago, she went from Tibet to Guangzhou to seek medical treatment, holding on to the last glimmer of hope; 7 years later, she took Hada to Guangzhou again, and a smile appeared on her face...
Professor Cao Xinping (second from left) poses with patients (first from right) and their families.
On November 5, the reporter learned from the Cancer Prevention and Control Center of Sun Yat-sen University that the hospital treated a patient with advanced cervical squamous cell carcinoma and has resumed normal work and life. Doctors remind that regular and standardized review should be carried out after tumor treatment, which is the most overlooked but extremely critical part of the anti-cancer process.
At the age of 42, she was diagnosed with advanced cervical cancer
In 2014, Ms. Qu, a 42-year-old Tibetan patient, went to a local hospital in Tibet for vaginal bleeding. When she heard the diagnosis of "advanced cervical squamous cell carcinoma", she felt that the sky was about to fall.
The local hospital could not be treated, and Ms. Qu sought medical treatment and came to the Cancer Prevention and Control Center of Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou. The gynecological department of the hospital arranged a cervical tissue biopsy for her, and the pathological examination results suggested "differentiated squamous cell carcinoma in the cervix". Imaging findings suggest that the tumor has invaded the vagina with multiple lymph node metastases in the left neck, para-abdominal aorta, and pelvic cavity. This means that she has no chance of surgery anymore.
Is it necessary to give up like this? Ms. Qu came to the Radiation Therapy Department of the Cancer Prevention and Control Center of Sun Yat-sen University, and Professor Cao Xinping received her. Combined with disease assessment and multidisciplinary consultation, Cao Xinping believes that palliative care can be carried out first, and strive to minimize tumor burden, improve patient quality of life, and prolong survival time.
Ms. Qu underwent systemic chemotherapy at the Cancer Prevention and Treatment Center of Sun Yat-sen University. Because of the widespread metastasis of the tumor, the treatment regimen is aimed at improving the patient's quality of life. After 3 courses of treatment, the medical staff was pleasantly surprised to find that Ms. Qu's primary lesion had basically disappeared, and she did not have serious side effects.
New technologies of radiation therapy bring new hope
Because the tumor regression after systemic chemotherapy is ideal, the medical staff decided to carry out personalized treatment for Ms. Qu after several consultations.
Different from the traditional external beam radiation, the medical staff directly performed "rear-loading brachytherapy" for Ms. Qu, that is, ct-guided cervical cancer with freehand implantation and post-installation radiotherapy technology. This can not only enable the primary tumor to achieve sufficient local radiation treatment, but also reduce the side effects after radiotherapy, which is the dose balance point that medical staff strive to find.
This treatment method requires the doctor to insert several hollow metal needles directly into the tumor tissue according to the shape, size and distribution characteristics of the tumor after combining the results of imaging and gynecological examination, and further adjust the depth, direction and position of the needle through the subsequent CT scan image, and accurately delineate the scope of treatment.
After a team of doctors, nurses, physicists, and therapists work together to accurately define the target area, the very small radioactive source will walk along several hollow metal needles in turn, walking inside it, while releasing rays that can kill the tumor. Since the radiation source is directly within the tumor range, high doses can be given in a small area while effectively protecting the surrounding vital organs.
According to reports, this technology was first clinically studied and tried by Cao Xinping's team in 2003, and was first applied to cervical cancer patients in 2006. After nearly 20 years of development, the technology has gradually matured and been promoted and applied.
After the application of this technology, the overall survival rate of cervical cancer patients in the hospital increased from about 55% to 80.5%, of which 100% of the stage i, 85.7% of the stage IIA, 79.2% of the stage IIB, 82% of the iiib stage, and 60.1% of the ivb stage. In terms of side effects, the most important toxic side effect of radiotherapy- advanced radiation enteritis of level 3 or above, the incidence rate has decreased from about 10% to 1.2%, and the effect is very significant.
Ms. Qu completed all the diagnosis and treatment plans in three months, and the treatment process was very smooth. For 7 years, she insisted on regular follow-ups while maintaining long-term oral chemotherapy medication. During this year's review, she specially brought a white Hada and thanked the medical staff of the Radiation Therapy Department of the Cancer Prevention and Control Center of Sun Yat-sen University with the highest Tibetan etiquette.
"The successful treatment of this patient encourages us to face patients with refractory tumors and never give up lightly." Professor Chen Ming, director of the Department of Radiotherapy of the Cancer Prevention and Control Center of Sun Yat-sen University, reminded that if you find that you are unwell, you should seek medical treatment in time. If the tumor is diagnosed, there is no need to panic, maintain a good attitude during the treatment process, trust the doctor, cooperate with the doctor, and review it regularly after the treatment is over.
[Reporter] Zhu Xiaofeng
[Correspondent] Wen Chaoyang, Chen Zheng, Gao Han
【Author】 Zhu Xiaofeng
Guangdong health headlines
Source: South+ - Create more value