What Researchers Did
Researchers treated 10 patients suffering from severe radiation-induced cystitis with persistent macroscopic hematuria using hyperbaric oxygen therapy.
What They Found
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy, involving 20 sessions of 100% oxygen inhalation at 3 bar pressure, completely stopped macroscopic hematuria in 6 of 10 patients. In the remaining 4 patients, who had recurrent or residual bladder malignancies, hematuria decreased.
What This Means for Canadian Patients
Canadian patients experiencing severe radiation-induced cystitis with persistent hematuria might find hyperbaric oxygen therapy to be a beneficial treatment option. This therapy could offer relief from a challenging side effect of radiation treatment for pelvic cancers.
Canadian Relevance
This study has no direct Canadian connection.
Study Limitations
The study was limited by its small sample size of 10 patients and lack of a control group.