Injection
chemotherapy

Proton therapy combined with chemotherapy for head and neck cancer and bladder cancer

At Southern Tohoku Cancer Proton Therapy Center, we provide multidisciplinary treatment that combines proton therapy and intra-arterial chemotherapy to preserve the function and shape of the head and neck. For organs in the head and neck region, this treatment is particularly effective for tongue cancer, maxillary cancer, and pharyngeal cancer. In advanced bladder cancer, the bladder is usually completely removed.

A combination of intra-arterial chemotherapy and proton therapy is performed to preserve the bladder. Intra-arterial chemotherapy is a treatment in which a catheter is inserted into a blood vessel, and anti-cancer drugs are injected directly into the artery that supplies nutrients to the cancer tissue, therefore shrinking and eliminating the cancer. Unlike regular anti-cancer drug treatments that are injected through a vein, this treatment is characterized by its high therapeutic effect, as it allows high concentrations of anti-cancer drugs to be administered only to the artery that provides nutrients to the cancer. In addition, the anti-cancer drugs used have a radiosensitizing effect, and when used in combination with radiation therapy (proton therapy), the therapeutic effect can be enhanced.

Two types of intra-arterial chemotherapy

There are two types of intra-arterial chemotherapy: "retrograde intra-arterial chemotherapy," in which a catheter is inserted through the superficial temporal artery in front of the ear, and "superselective intra-arterial chemotherapy using the Seldinger technique" (see diagram below), in which a catheter is inserted through the femoral or brachial artery. At our center, we provide both techniques for intra-arterial chemotherapy for head and neck cancer to provide more effective treatment. For bladder cancer, we use the Seldinger technique.

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  Retrograde dynamic chemotherapy for advanced tongue cancer

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  Superselective Arterial Chemotherapy by the Seldinger Method

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  Injection chemotherapy for bladder cancer