Cindy Dyer's doctors found a tumor one-millimeter in size on her mammogram. She needed a lumpectomy.
To do that, surgeons have to precisely locate the tumor. The standard way is to insert a large wire through a needle -- with x-rays as a guide.
"You can't see it. You can't feel it, so you're kind of guessing based on those X-rays. For some, it can be very uncomfortable, painful," said Dr. Louis Barr, Surgical Oncologist, Florida Hospital Cancer Institute.
Dr. Barr offered Cindy something different. Radioactive seeds are implanted in the center of the lump. A device reads the radioactive signal inside the seeds, guiding the surgeon to the right spot so he can remove the tumor.
"It gives us a precise way of knowing exactly where the spot is that we need to go," said Dr. Barr.
The seeds can be implanted as up to five days before surgery. The wire needs to be inserted the day of surgery,
In a Mayo Clinic study, only eight percent patients needed additional surgery, versus 25 percent with the wire method. There's also less pain with the seeds and little to no recovery time.
Because of early detection, Cindy is cancer-free.
The seeds are removed at the same time as the tumor.
These same seeds have been used to treat prostate cancer.
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