Treatments
The main therapeutic strategies used to treat cancer are surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and immunotherapy.
Surgery
Surgery is a treatment that aims to remove the tumor as well as any potentially affected surrounding tissue and lymph nodes. Once the tumor has been removed, reconstructive surgery may be considered.
The surgery department treats most types of cancer in adults. Procedures are performed by a team of surgeons who focus exclusively on cancer surgery.
The CGFL has acquired a DA VINCI XI surgical robot. At the cutting edge of innovation, the Da Vinci XI surgical robot installed at the CGFL offers high-precision movements and incorporates a high-definition imaging system. In addition, the surgical console can be connected to an ultrasound system, whose images are projected directly onto the control screen to guide the surgeon throughout the procedure.
The CGFL has acquired 4 photobiomodulation machines
Photobiomodulation (PBM) is a technique that uses red or near-infrared light from different light sources to provoke a response at the cellular level.
It is used for its analgesic, anti-inflammatory and tissue healing properties.
It is non-invasive, painless and has no heat effect on the skin.
Photobiomodulation can be used to mitigate the effects of chemotherapy or the consequences of radiotherapy. It may also be offered by the facility’s pain management department, which has one of the four devices currently available at the CGFL.
Chemotherapy
At the CGFL, chemotherapy is prepared within our establishment and can be administered in the Day Hospital or in conventional hospitalization.
Radiotherapy
Alone or in combination with other treatments, radiation therapy involves the use of ionizing radiation to destroy cancer cells while preserving healthy tissue and surrounding organs.
There are two types of radiation therapy: external beam radiation therapy and brachytherapy.
In external radiation therapy, rays are emitted in a beam by a machine called an accelerator, located near the patient, and pass through the skin to reach the tumor.
In brachytherapy, radioactive sources are placed in the patient’s tissue, inside or as close as possible to the tumor.
At CGFL, the radiotherapy department is equipped with:
- 1 scanner
- 4 accelerators
- MRIdian Linac®
- 1 3D external dosimetry system
- 1 HDR room
- 2 secure rooms
The CGFL is one of the first centers in France to have equipped itself with an MRI Linac:
The MRIdianLinac® revolutionizes radiotherapy by using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to guide the rays, instead of a scanner.
Concretely, thanks to the on-board MRI, the movements of the tumor and adjacent organs are monitored with extreme precision, which allows a real-time dose calculation before each session, in order to simultaneously deliver more targeted irradiations to the tumors, and less invasive for the surrounding healthy tissues.
The goal is to advance adaptive and personalized radiotherapy treatments, for ever more precise care for patients. This innovative technology is particularly suited to mobile or very small tumors. This is the case for liver, pancreatic, lung, prostate, and colorectal cancers.
At the CGFL, immunotherapy has now become a key part of the center’s two major missions: research and care.
In research, the CGFL teams are conducting several studies on the role of the immune system and resistance mechanisms (particularly in digestive, skin, and lung cancers) as well as on circulating DNA or circulating cells. This work aims to better describe the anti-tumor immune response. On the care side, several CGFL patients have already benefited from this innovative treatment as part of therapeutic trials. These phase I, II, or III trials are conducted within the Clinical Research Center.
Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy relies on harnessing the immune system’s defense mechanisms to attack and eliminate cancer cells. Over the decades, several methods have been explored, with a particularly promising approach recently emerging: administering drugs designed to alter the behavior of immune cells, breaking their tolerance toward tumor cells and thus activating their ability to destroy them.
Hormone therapy
The multiplication of certain types of malignant cells is dependent on hormones, including breast and prostate cancers.
Prostate cancer and hormone therapy
It slows the growth and spread of prostate cancer cells by blocking their receptors or altering hormone levels in the body.
Breast cancer and hormone therapy:
In premenopausal women:
- Antiestrogens are most often proposed as the first treatment for a duration of 5 years
- LH-RH agonists can be considered on a case-by-case basis, over a period of 3 to 5 years.
In menopausal women:
- Aromatase inhibitors are most often proposed as the first treatment for a duration of 5 years or for 2 years, followed by treatment with tamoxifen (for a total of 5 years of hormonal therapy).
- Antiestrogens may be offered for 2 to 3 years, followed by an aromatase inhibitor (for a total of 5 years of hormone therapy) or, alone, for 5 years.
Interventional radiology
Interventional radiology is a diagnostic and therapeutic technique known as “minimally invasive” which allows deep tumors to be reached using natural pathways (such as the urinary or digestive system), the vascular network (arteries or veins), or by taking a short and safe route through an organ. These interventions are guided by imaging techniques (scanner, ultrasound, endoscopy), allowing the interior of the body to be visualized without resorting to open surgery.
Internal radiotherapy vectorized at CGFL since 2023
A breakthrough therapeutic innovation for the treatment of certain metastatic cancers, Vectorized Internal Radiotherapy consists of administering to patients small molecules carrying a radioactive atom, which will recognize and attach to a target expressed or overexpressed by tumor cells. Thus, the radioactivity delivered directly to the tumor cells will cause damage to their DNA, stopping the progression of the disease. These treatments are administered under the responsibility of nuclear medicine physicians, in close collaboration with medical oncologists.