Photodynamic Therapy
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Photodynamic Therapy
Listen to Dr. Mark Lund explain the purpose and benefits of photodynamic therapy. This type of therapy is commonly used to treat lung cancer and esophageal cancer.
This innovative treatment uses light-activated drugs and a laser to destroy cancer cells and treat symptomatic tissues. First, your doctor injects a photosensitizing agent to make cells more sensitive to light. The drugs are absorbed by cancer cells over the course of a couple of days. Next, your doctor applies laser light to the airway using image guidance. When the laser is turned on, it shines on the tumor and reacts with photosensitized cells to destroy them.
PDT takes minutes to complete. It can be performed on an outpatient basis, is relatively pain-free, requires minimal sedation, involves less risk than surgery and has minimal side effects because healthy tissue is spared. PDT can also be repeated on the same area, unlike radiation and chemotherapy, which makes it a good option for treating tumors that recur. The most common side effect is sensitivity to bright light, which lasts 4-6 weeks.
The benefits of PDT include:
- Performed on an outpatient basis
- Relatively pain-free
- Requires minimal sedation
- Less risk than surgical procedures
- Minimal side effects.
Interventional Radiology
- Abscess Drainage and Fluid Collection Management
- Angioplasty
- Arterial Infusion Catheter Placement
- Biliary Drainage
- Biopsy
- Bone & Joint Injection
- Breast Biopsy (see MRI-Guided Breast Biopsy)
- Breast Ductography
- Breast Needle Localization
- Chemoembolization
- Cryotherapy
- CT Angiography
- CT Bone Density
- CT Fluoroscopy
- CT-Guided Biopsy
- Echocardiogram
- Electrocardiogram (EKG)
- Embolization
- Epidural Steroid Injection
- Feeding Tube Placement
- Fracture Care
- Inferior Vena Cava Filter
- Intraoperative Ultrasound
- Kyphoplasty
- Lung Nodule Analysis
- Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
- Mammography
- Microwave Ablation
- MR Computer-Aided Detection
- MRI-Guided Breast Biopsy
- Multidetector CT Scanner
- Multiple-Gated Acquisition (MUGA) Scan
- Nephrostomy Drainage
- Nerve Block
- Nuclear Medicine Imaging
- Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter (PICC) Placement
- PET Scan
- PET/CT Scan
- Photodynamic Therapy (PDT)
- Port Placement
- Prostascint Scan
- Radiofrequency Ablation (RFA)
- SPECT/CT Camera
- Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy
- Stent Placement
- Surgical Radiography
- TheraSphere®
- Thrombolysis
- Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt (TIPS)
- Trellis®Peripheral Infusion System
- Ultrasound
- Venography
- Vertebroplasty (see Kyphoplasty)
- X-Ray
