Patients with specific types of cancer will have another treatment option at the Patricia D. Pepe Center for Cancer Care at OSF HealthCare Saint Anthony Medical Center in Rockford.
Pluvicto, a specific type of theranostics, was recently approved for use at OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center. Pluvicto will be available at OSF Saint Anthony starting later this year.
With this type of treatment available, local patients will have the opportunity to stay in Rockford for care. “Before, we sent patients to Madison and Chicago. Being able to do this here at OSF is going to save many people from traveling 60 or more miles,” says Iftekhar Ahmad, MD, medical director, Oncology Services, OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center. “Those patients will benefit from receiving high-quality care right here at home.”
Theranostics is a unique oncology approach combining diagnostic imaging with therapeutic treatment. The theranostics treatment available at OSF is called Lutetuim-177 PSMA (Pluvicto), which has been shown to work against advanced prostate cancer. There is also a Lutetium-177 agent that can be used for advanced neuroendocrine tumors and preliminary work is being done to bring this to the OSF program as well.
The treatment is more precise, and spares healthy tissues, which leads to fewer side effects.
“The big push in all oncology treatment is tailored medicine that is personalized for the patient’s specific cancer,” says Dr. Ahmad. “A diagnostic tracer locates the disease, then a similar molecule with a therapeutic radioisotope delivers targeted radiation to destroy the cancerous cells. Essentially, we’re using the imaging to guide the treatment.”
For more information about cancer programs and services, visit the OSF HealthCare website.