Experience with recurrent local pancreatic cancer. Radiation success?

There are only a limited number of centers in the U.S. that offer proton therapy, which is why people sometimes have to travel for it. Currently there are fewer than 50 proton therapy centers nationwide. ()

Some of the larger or well-known centers include places like MD Anderson (Houston), Mayo Clinic (Rochester), Massachusetts General Hospital (Boston), University of Pennsylvania, and Loma Linda University Medical Center in California. ()

Because your recurrence is small and localized with no metastasis, it might be worth asking about radiation options like SBRT or proton therapy and possibly getting a second opinion at a major pancreatic cancer center that has experience with these treatments.

Wishing you the best as you explore the next step.

Look into IRE Nanoknife or ablation techniques. Mayo offered me photon radiation. I felt side effects were too risky. I wanted either SBRT or proton but that was not offered.

Best of luck.

Not sure where you are located, but you could try setting up a pancreatic cancer consultation appointment with Dr. Michael Chuong, Miami Cancer Institute, in Miami, Florida. They have a ViewRay™ MRIdian Linac. This state-of-the-art system is the first FDA-approved therapy to pair advanced MRI imaging with high dose radiation treatment that they seem to be using with success for pancreatic cancer tumors. You can check out their website for more information. Good Luck!!!

My husband has a local recurrence of pancreatic cancer post 3 year whipple operation. He recently had an 8 round course of chemo, gemcitabine with abraxane and the tumor is under control. He is now going to try the high dose radiation, over a course of 5 days, at Miami Cancer Institute.