Local Cancer Care’ s Radiopharmaceutical Revolution
DEDICATED HOME FOR A FAST-EVOLVING TREATMENT
Radiopharmaceutical therapy is getting its own space at Renown Health: a remodeled suite at 75 Pringle Way in Reno, on the Renown Regional Medical Center campus. The new space will allow radiopharmaceutical therapy offerings to grow as more of the treatments receive government approval.
“ We will have seven treatment bays and a central nurses’ station where nurses can remotely monitor patients during therapy,” says Devon Locke, RT( N)( CT), PET, supervisor of Nuclear Medicine, PET / CT and EKG at Renown Health.“ Eventually, the suite will also have an additional PET / CT scanner, which will significantly increase the number of scans we can do.”
Renown Health’ s new Radiopharmaceutical Therapy Program brings the power of precision medicine to patients with cancer.
THERANOSTICS, A LEADING-EDGE APPROACH to precision medicine, integrates diagnostic imaging, such as PET / CT, with the delivery of a radioactive agent. This process allows physicians to determine whether cancer cells express
Suchit Patel, MD, PhD specific molecular targets and then administer the radiopharmaceutical to attack them— streamlining diagnosis and treatment into a single, seamless process. The Renown Health Radiopharmaceutical Therapy Program serves as a dedicated site for theranostics care, providing northern Nevadans access to these innovative treatments.
“ We launched our Radiopharmaceutical Therapy Program this year to treat advanced prostate cancer with a targeted radiopharmaceutical called Pluvicto ®,” says Suchit Patel, MD, PhD, radiation oncologist at Renown Health’ s William N. Pennington Cancer Institute.“ Establishing this program was a combined effort of nuclear medicine, radiation oncology and our administration.”
Targeting Prostate Cancer Candidates for Pluvicto, a type of peptide receptor radionuclide therapy( PRRT), include those with PSMA-positive, metastatic, castration-resistant prostate cancer. Patients receive up to six intravenous infusions spaced six weeks apart.
“ With PRRT, a small protein fragment, the peptide, is attached to a radioactive molecule,” says Anthony Khuu, MD, MBA, chair of the Department of Radiology, medical director of Nuclear Medicine and Ultrasound, and radiation safety officer at Renown Health.“ The peptide seeks out cancer cells, allowing the radioactive molecule to deliver cancer-killing radiation therapy directly to the cells while largely sparing healthy tissue. Specialized cameras detect the radiation and show exactly where it deposits in the body.”
Just Getting Started In addition to Pluvicto, Renown Health will soon begin offering Lutathera ®, a radiopharmaceutical therapy for neuroendocrine tumors. With many more radiopharmaceutical treatments under study, these therapies have the potential to transform care for numerous types of cancer.
“ Our Radiopharmaceutical Therapy Program is designed to improve patients’ outcomes without adding complexity to referring physicians’ workflow,” says Aaron Andersen, PhD, DABR, director of medical physics and associate radiation safety officer at Renown Health.“ Having this treatment at Renown Health keeps patients close to home.”
Call 775-982-5638 for referrals to a radiation oncologist at the William N. Pennington Cancer Institute.
VOLUME 2, ISSUE 1 | Renown Health | 7