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New Advances in Treating Skin Cancer

3,208 views · Published 26 June 2016 · 1:49 · Indexed 24 October 2026

Channel: Lee Health · 2016 · Science & Technology

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A new, non-surgical treatment option is now available for people diagnosed with skin cancer. It’s called brachytherapy. It’s a relatively new skin cancer treatment using radiation. 

Dr. Constantine Mantz, a radiation oncologist on staff at Lee Memorial Health System, says brachytherapy has been around for a long time. The treatment has been used all over the body for many different types of cancer. But now, health experts are using the treatment as an alternative for patients diagnosed with skin cancer. “What it involves is the use of a very tiny radioactive metal that is placed either directly onto the tumor or right up against it and it delivers a very high radiation to the tumor,” said Dr. Mantz.

Brachytherapy is an effective alternative for patients who are not good candidates for surgery. “It’s not a surgical therapy. There’s no cutting or stitching together. For some patients who have tumors located around the face, especially near the nose or near the mouth, where surgery would be effective, but may result in maybe a cosmetic or functional outcome, that would not be optimal,” said Dr. Mantz.

The treatment is not as quickly effective as surgery. Patients will undergo brachytherapy anywhere between six and ten times before the cancer is gone. “The treatment itself usually takes anywhere from five to ten minutes and the patient feels nothing during the course of treatment,” said Dr. Mantz.

Once the sessions are complete, patients are typically considered cancer free, with studies showing no recurrence from the treated area. 


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Lee Memorial Health System in Fort Myers, FL is the largest network of medical care facilities in Southwest Florida and is highly respected for its expertise, innovation and quality of care. For nearly a century, we’ve been providing our community with everything from primary care treatment to highly specialized care services and robotic assisted surgeries.

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