WESTON, Fla. – Specialists are working with a new approach to treating Glioblastoma, one of the most common tumors of the brain.
Dr. Hamid Borghei Razavi, a neurosurgeon with the Cleveland Clinic Weston and his colleagues are now working with a novel surgically tarted radiation therapy.
Small tiles containing radiation are inserted directly into the tumor and simply dissolve on their own over time.
“When we redo the operation for recurrent glioblastoma we put the radiation sources directly into the tumor instead of waiting for the wound to heal and starting the radiation later and the latest data is showing that starting the radiation immediately may increase tumor-free survival twice more than the older techniques or older medications that we use,” Razavi said.
The procedure currently is only done for patients with recurring tumors but could, at some point, be a first line of approach during initial surgery.
Chronic pain and weight
Researchers may have found an explanation as to why people with chronic pain struggle with their weight.
A study at the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience looked at the brain’s response to sugar and fat and found patients with low back pain had disrupted satiety signals.
The lead author of the study said this type of change can ultimately lead to the development of obesity.