LEO GORDON, MD: Traditional radiation targets a tumor mass, but it leaves totally untreated single cells that might be floating in other areas. And so traditional radiation is a very effect way of treating a localized tumor. But radioimmunotherapy offers an opportunity to deliver radiation to multiple sites in a targeted fashion at, we hope, safe doses.
RUSSELL SCHILDER, MD: Most radiotherapy in a traditional way is external beam. The radiation has to go through skin and other normal tissues before it hits the target of interest. By getting radioimmunotherapy, the radiation is brought right to the tissues of interest by the antibody that the radioactivity is linked to. The other difference between them is external beam often is Monday through Friday for many weeks. And radioimmunotherapy is one treatment one week, one treatment the next week, and then the treatment's over.
ANNOUNCER: Current radioimmunotherapies include Zevalin and Bexxar. Both therapies are delivered through a vein and generally require several visits over a period of time lasting one to two weeks. And the side effect profiles of each appear to be minimal.
RUSSELl SCHILDER, MD: The side effects other than the radiation side effects are mostly related to the same cold antibody that we use in rituximab therapy. They're related to fever, chills, a little fatigue, headaches; they're very non-specific, very well managed, and not very serious.
ANNOUNCER: Although there is still much to be learned about radioimmunotherapy, it is proving to be a promising new area of treatment for patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
