Has anyone had Gold Radioactive Targets put in as their course of radiation treatment?

My father has decided on this course and had his targets placed last week; 3 total. Ironically, anyone that he has spoken to never heard if it as a option before, let alone had it.

How did it work for you? What type of complications did you experience? Iv'e tried to research it and found little.

I love him dearly.....I don't want to come right out and ask him these types of things. My husband and I are trying to be the loving, funny, take his mind off of it....type of support, but I need to know what we are going to be dealing with. I want to be a source of strength also. The fear of the "unknown" is definately there for me.
I appreciate any input.
Thanks in advance.

Has anyone had Gold Radioactive Targets put in as their course of radiation treatment?

My father has decided on this course and had his targets placed last week; 3 total. Ironically, anyone that he has spoken to never heard if it as a option before, let alone had it.

How did it work for you? What type of complications did you experience? Iv'e tried to research it and found little.

I love him dearly.....I don't want to come right out and ask him these types of things. My husband and I are trying to be the loving, funny, take his mind off of it....type of support, but I need to know what we are going to be dealing with. I want to be a source of strength also. The fear of the "unknown" is definately there for me.
I appreciate any input.
Thanks in advance.

Yes- not sure if it's the same thing, but I'm having proton beam radiation at the University of Florida Proton Therapy Institute in Jacksonville, and three gold markers are implanted on the prostate prior to the treatments. Each day, prior to the actual radiation, these markers are used as guidance for the radiation beam to help insure accuracy in the treatment. There are digital xrays taken and slight changes can be made to take the guesswork out of all this. Is it proton therapy that your father is having? Where?

Don't feel like there's any question you cannot ask-- anyone going through this has generally done a lot of research and has spoken with many others. As shown by this board, we usually are willing to talk about just about anything- trying to help others facing the various issues and alternative treatments.

For those that have had biopsies, the marker implant procedure is similar in concept- quick outpatient with some numbing medication and then three little stings (at least it's not 8, 12, or 20 as with a biopsy).