Overview of carbon ion therapy for breast cancer
Aiming for treatment without surgery, QST Hospital is conducting clinical trials of “carbon ion therapy instead of surgery” for stage 0–I early breast cancer. Currently, carbon ion therapy for breast cancer is provided only in clinical trials.
Clinical trial structure
Enrollment for “Breast I” (stage I, age 60+) closed in May 2020. “Breast II” (stage 0–I, age 20+) and “Breast III” (stage 0–I, age 50+) are listed as recruiting. In Breast II, adjuvant therapy such as breast X-ray irradiation and hormone therapy follows carbon ion therapy; in Breast III, hormone therapy follows.
Main eligibility for Breast II
Invasive or non-invasive ductal carcinoma confirmed by needle biopsy or similar, with a single lesion within 20 mm on MRI. There must be no extensive lymphovascular invasion or intraductal spread, no lymph node metastasis over 2 mm on sentinel node biopsy, and no distant metastasis. Women aged 20 or older with performance status (PS) 0–2 who give written consent.
Main eligibility for Breast III
Non-invasive or invasive ductal carcinoma (usual type) confirmed by biopsy, stage 0–I with a single lesion within 20 mm on MRI. For invasive ductal carcinoma, the subtype must be Luminal A. Women aged 50 or older with PS 0–2 who give written consent.
Main exclusion criteria
Serious complications that make treatment hard to tolerate; prior surgery, chemotherapy, hormone, or targeted therapy for cancer in the same breast; systemic drug therapy for another active cancer; tumor edge within 5 mm of the skin on MRI; prior radiotherapy to the same area; pregnancy (Breast II); tumor invading the chest wall or skin (Breast III); and others. Participation is decided by the physician based on examination and test results.
Metastases from breast cancer
Lung metastases (up to 3), liver metastases (up to 3), and lymph node metastases (in principle, one nodal region) from breast cancer are eligible for Advanced Medical Care as metastatic tumors.
Notice on overseas patients
QST Hospital states that it does not accept breast cancer patients from overseas. Original: "※The patients from overseas with breast cancer and esophageal cancer are not accepted.Please contact us for details"
View original ↗Breast cancer resources other than carbon ion therapy: IVR (Interventional Radiology)
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