Frontiers in Breast Cancer Research, Part II: Developments in Partial Breast Irradiation and Tumor Ablation

As the use of breast conserving lumpectomy expands as a treatment for early-stage breast cancer, interest has surged in alternatives to whole breast irradiation. Follow-on radiation treatment is crucial to the success of this therapy, but a significant number of women are either unable or unwilling to undergo the typical treatment course involving five to seven weeks of daily radiation therapy. The device industry is responding with technologies aimed at delivering post-lumpectomy radiation therapy in a more convenient, potentially safer way.