Epidermal Radioisotope Therapy Using Rhenium-188 for Non-Melanoma Skin Cancer
Posted: Friday, September 18, 2020
According to long-term retrospective study findings published in the Journal of Dermatological Treatment, rhenium-188–based skin cancer therapy appears to be effective and safe in treating non-melanoma skin cancer lesions. An alternative to conventional surgical intervention, rhenium-188 may be used as an individualized irradiation therapy.
“The main advantage of the described technique lies in the usefulness in all types of basal cell carcinomas and squamous cell carcinoma, without the restriction of anatomical location, dimension, number of lesions, clinical or histological type, and patient clinical situation,” concluded Bernadette Eberlein, MD, of the Technical University of Munich School of Medicine, Munich, and colleagues.
Patients (34 males, 18 females) with confirmed basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, Bowen’s disease, and/or extramammary Paget’s disease received individualized rhenium-188 therapy, with 55 lesions treated in total. All lesions were initially outlined with a demographic pen, including an approximate 5-mm safety margin. Prior to irradiation, the demarcated irradiation area was covered either by a layer of protective cream and/or foil. Rhenium-188–containing resin was then applied, with individually calculated dosage for each lesion based on the assumption that a 50-Gy dose at a depth of 300 to 600 µm from the epidermis to be sufficient. All lesions appeared to be in complete remission after a single therapeutic intervention, with an average follow-up of 414 days.
Study authors emphasized the dermatologist’s role in demarcating proper irradiation and safety margins to minimize the need for additional treatments and to mitigate damage to healthy tissue. Although some treated areas presented with depigmentation, no other signs of radiation damage or complications were reported.
Disclosure: For full disclosures of the study authors, visit tandfonline.com.
