Once a patient receives an angioplasty (balloon) treatment for a blocked blood vessel, sometimes they receive small metal devices called stents. These stents help hold open the artery. Unfortunately some of those who receive stents experience new tissue growth that will often clog the stents. These clogged vessels may need to be re-opened. Medical sources estimate that approximately 150,000 patients in the U.S. need treatment for this condition.

The procedure called brachytherapy allows a healthcare team to insert a small tube or catheter into the blocked vessel. The catheter will them project a small dose of radiation that is used to treat the inside of the vessel to open it and prevent it from re-closing. Two physicians (a radiation oncologist and a cardiologist) plus a specially trained group of catheterization lab technicians and a radiation physicist work together to administer this treatment to the patient. The whole procedure takes approximately one-two hours.

According to Cath Lab Director Kathy Vaughn, "We are using the Novoste(r) Beta-Cath System which is primarily used to treat patients suffering from restenosis, a condition in which coronary stents become blocked with new tissue growth."

For more information about brachytherapy, ask your physician.