Friday, June 12, 2009

Can IMRT treatment for prostate cancer cause lymphoma in bone marrow

can IMRT treatment for prostate cancer cause lymphoma in bone marrow?
I had IMRT for prostate cancer one year ago. Now I have non-hodgkins lymphoma in my bone marrow. Has anyone heard of this risk?

Cancer - 2 Answers
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1 :
I have never heard of this specificly, but I do know that chemo and radiation is a risk factor of all lymphomas and leukemias. My treatment for leukemia puts me at high risk for brain cancer, as well as other types of leukemia. Which is ironic being that my treatment is also used for.. certain types of brain cancer. Unfortunatly, it is one of those catch 22 things. The treatment for one type of cancer very often causes or atleast is a risk factor for another type.
2 :
(Lymphoma in bone marrow can often be very nasty. My answer would most likey be that your IMRT did not cause your lymphoma, unless you received many treatments.. The possibility of the IMRT increases depending on the location of the lymphoma (in relation to your prostate area).) ---------- It's always a possibility that the radiation treatment could cause cancer somewhere else, but most likely not. Although the radiation dosage for IMRT is fairly high, it's usually not enough to cause another form of cancer. There are many genetic factors for different types of malignant carcinomas, which plays a large part in most patients who are victims of cancer. There is also possibility of metastasis, where the cancer spreads though the lymphatic system from one place to another, but that type of carcinoma would probably not be very differeciated, meaning there would probably be a mutation when it transfered. There is also a newer type of treatment out for B-Cell lymphoma, which has had great results. You may be a candidate for it. It's called Bexxar or Tositumomab. It requires IV administration of a radioactive isotope that only targets the B-cell lymphoma, and has way less side effects than chemotherapy (although sometimes it's used in conjunction with chemo), and it usually exposes you to less whole body radiation than IMRT. Hope this helps you out.

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