The New England Journal of Medicine has released study results showing that a new cancer treatment regimen for lymphoma is efficient and effective.
Two medications are combined and injected into lymphoma patients. The medication is radioactive and seeks out specific proteins found in cancer cells in the body. It attaches to tumors and the radiation kills the cancer cells without harming healthy tissue.
The Drugs
The two drugs are called Tositumomab and Iodine I 131 Tositumomab. The combination is called Bexxar treatment.
According to the National Cancer Institute, Tositumomab is a monoclonal antibody that is used in the treatment of certain types of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. When tositumomab and iodine I 131 tositumomab (a form of tositumomab that has been chemically changed by adding radioactive iodine) are given together, the combination is called the Bexxar regimen.
The Treatment
The treatment lasts only one week and includes two injections. Traditional chemotherapy and radiation therapy can take several months or more. There are fewer side effects in this treatment and 59 percent of the patients remained cancer-free during the five years of the study. This is similar to the survival rate of long-term chemotherapy. It can be used with patients when other therapies have not worked.
Further studies will test whether this treatment will also work with other cancers such as prostate, breast, and ovarian cancer. It may be three or four years before final results are available.
|
