New High-Tech Treatment Extending Lives of Pancreatic Cancer Patients
By Diana Lomont, Editorial Contributor
A new surgical technology at Orlando Health UF Health Cancer Center gives patients with the most advanced forms of pancreatic cancer a new treatment option that can significantly improve survival rates.
Using the NanoKnife® technology, oncologists deploy electrical currents to punch holes in the cancer cell membranes of a tumor and cause cell death. The targeted electrical currents affect only the cancer cells, allowing oncologists to treat the tumor while preserving healthy tissue, veins and nerves surrounding the tumor. Cancer specialists such as Dr. Debashish Bose, director of the Pancreas Center at Orlando Health UF Health Cancer Center, believe NanoKnife offers promise for those late-stage patients who often have few options.
“The results are good in patients receiving the NanoKnife treatment at cancer centers across the country. On average, we’re seeing no disease progression 14 months after treatment,” says Dr. Bose. “We expect to see the same results or better with patients we treat here at Orlando Health. For the right patients, NanoKnife will make a big difference.”
Candidates for the Procedure
NanoKnife is an option for patients with pancreatic or liver cancer who haven’t had success with other treatments or who can’t be treated using traditional methods. It also may be suitable for patients who have previously undergone chemotherapy or surgery, but their cancer has returned.
Patients with small tumors less than 5 centimeters who aren’t candidates for radiation therapy or traditional surgery also may be candidates for NanoKnife and should talk to their oncologist about whether the procedure is appropriate for them.
NanoKnife is still a relatively new treatment, pioneered at the University of Louisville. Orlando Health UF Health Cancer Center is the first surgical center in Central Florida to provide this breakthrough technology.
For more information about NanoKnife treatments at Orlando Health UF Health Cancer Center, visit OrlandoHealthCancer.com/NanoKnife.
