Latest News Releases

Contura - New Option for Breast Cancer Treatment

June 14, 2009

Saint Mary's introduces new radiation therapy option to West Michigan for the 55 percent of women whose bra sizes are size B or smaller.

Contura, used for the first time in West Michigan at Saint Mary's Health Care, can decrease the length of radiation therapy in breast cancer treatments by several weeks.

A small balloon device, Contura is surgically inserted into the patient's breast. The design of Contura is multi-chambered, making it more effective with its ability to send radiation closer to the tumor and farther away from normal tissue. Patients receive radiation treatment twice a day for five days, rather than undergo five to six weeks of radiation with external beam radiation therapy. Once the radiation treatment is complete, Contura is surgically removed.

In the state of Michigan, fewer than 100 patients have undergone this treatment option. Although it's not yet standard practice, more than 5,000 patients nationwide have had Contura for breast cancer treatment.

Jamie Caughran, MD, breast surgeon, surgically placed the first Contura device into a Saint Mary's patient on June 4, 2009.

Gilbert Padula, MD, radiation oncologist, and a medical physicist supervised the radiation therapy treatment given to the patient for the entire following week.

Similar to MammoSite, another balloon-like device that has one chamber, Contura works more effectively for women with bra sizes B or smaller, as its multi-chambered design allows the radiation closer proximity to the tumor. As 55 percent of women are a bra size B or smaller, Contura allows for more women to seek the benefits on internal beam radiation therapy for breast cancer treatment. Women with smaller bra sizes typically do not qualify for MammoSite.