The use of radioisotopes for palliation of metastatic bone pain.
Bone pain associated with advanced prostate and other cancers is a frequent and significant complication. Pharmaceutical therapy of bone pain includes nonsteroidal analgesics and opiates. While external beam radiation therapy remains the mainstay of pain palliation of solitary lesions, bone-seeking radiopharmaceuticals have entered the armamentarium for the treatment of multiple osseous metastases. The 3 radioisotopes currently approved for treatment of pain (strontium-89/(89)Sr, samarium-153/(153)Sm and rhenium-186/(186)Re) are discussed in this review including the approved dose, method of administration and indications for use.
Department of Urology, General Hospital of Athens G. Gennimatas, 154 Mesogeion Avenue, Athens, Greece. igkialas@ath.forthnet.gr
I
I
Gkialas
L
L
Iordanidou
I
I
Galanakis
S
S
Giannopoulos
D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000532:radiotherapy* / Q000556:secondary*; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology* / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000379:methods*; D011868:Radioisotopes / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals / Q000627:therapeutic use*
D011868:Radioisotopes; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals