Download Bassett offers a minimally invasive procedure to target liver cancer.

Cancer
Fight
New Hope in the
Bassett offers a
minimally invasive
procedure to target
liver cancer
Christine Allen, RN, and
Christine Risley at Bassett’s
Herkimer Health Center
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bassett.org
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F
or patients diagnosed with
cancer that has spread to the
liver, treatment options are
often limited and focus on
pain management. But there is new
hope for patients and their families:
radioembolization, a minimally invasive
procedure that combines embolization
and radiation therapy to treat cancer.
Mohit Gupta,
The procedure is now available at Bassett
MD
Medical Center and targets inoperable
tumors that have metastasized to the liver.
“Up to 90 percent of patients with
metastatic liver cancer die of liver failure,”
says Timothy Korytko, MD, Chief of
Radiation Oncology at Bassett Medical
Center. “This therapy uses a mapping
process that allows us to selectively
target liver tumors with a dose of internal
radiation up to 40 times higher than
Timothy
conventional radiotherapy.”
Korytko, MD
Christine Risley, 59, from Inlet, was
diagnosed with endocrine cancer in
2014. By March 2015, the cancer had spread to her liver and
was causing a great deal of pain. She met with Mohit Gupta,
MD, interventional radiologist at Bassett Medical Center,
and learned that she was a candidate for radioembolization
treatment. “The tumor was nearly 20 centimeters when we
began treatment,” says Dr. Gupta. “After the first treatment,
the tumor was less than 13 centimeters.”
“The therapy was a lot more intense than I expected it
to be and it took me two months to feel myself again,” says
Risley. “But it’s worth it. If it gives me a chance to be around
longer, then I’m going to do it. It’s nice to know there is hope
and there are options.”
During the procedure, small beads are placed inside blood
vessels to deliver a high dose of radiation to the cancer cells
while also blocking the blood supply feeding the tumor. “Because
of the procedure’s preciseness, we are able to spare normal
tissue around the tumor, slow its growth or even shrink the
mass, extend the lives of our patients and improve their quality
of life,” says Dr. Gupta.
“The results are promising,” says Risley. “Dr. Gupta has
been honest and comforting from the first time I met him.
My care team at Herkimer Health Center has also been a
blessing. We have become family.”
“Chris is a fighter,” says Christine Allen, RN, oncology
nurse at Herkimer Health Center. “Our patients are not just
patients, they become our family. When we see family, we
hug, we laugh, we cry, we encourage and we love. The love
and friendship helps patients like Chris to keep fighting.”
“I appreciate the great work that Bassett does,” says
Risley. “It’s wonderful to have innovative treatment so close
to home. Thanks to Bassett, I am able to hold on to the most
important thing in this fight—hope.” 1
CONNECT WITH CARE
To learn more about radioembolization
treatment at Bassett, call 607-547-6732 .
Cancer care close to home
Cancer care is available at a Bassett Healthcare Network location near you. To learn more about Bassett Cancer
Institute, visit bassett.org/cancer.
D Bassett Medical Center, 607-547-3336
D Herkimer Health Center, 315-867-2808
D Bassett-Fox Radiation Oncology, 607-431-5475
D Oneonta Cancer Center at FoxCare, 607-433-6470
D Cobleskill Regional Hospital, 518-254-3400
D Tri-Town Specialty Services, 607-561-7980
1 Atwell Rd., Cooperstown, NY 13326
1 FoxCare Dr. #403, Oneonta , NY 13820
178 Grandview Dr., Cobleskill, NY 12043
321 E. Albany St., Herkimer, NY 13350
1 FoxCare Dr. #310, Oneonta, NY 13820
43 Pearl St. W., Sidney, NY 13838
bassett.org
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