By Kay Quinn, KSDK-TV, April 13, 2007

Many patients diagnosed with breast cancer undergo six weeks of radiation therapy to lessen the chances of the tumor returning. Now, some women can get the same dose of radiation delivered in just five days instead of six weeks.

The shorter treatment time is made possible by some new technology -- a machine that has the ability to take diagnostic images and deliver therapeutic radiation all at the same time.

It''s technology that has allowed the development of a technique called partial breast radiation.

"We can take CT scans of the patient in the treatment position, we can take conventional X-rays of the patient in the treatment position and in addition we have a three-dimensional camera," said Dr. Simon Powell, a radiation oncologist at Siteman Cancer Center.

Unlike standard radiation therapy where the entire breast is exposed to the X-ray beam, this machine can deliver an external beam of radiation accurate to within one millimeter.

Patients need two treatment sessions per day, but it allows doctors to deliver a full six week dose of radiation therapy in just five days.

"The other thing I should emphasize is the side effects of treatment are much less because much less of the body is being treated. The patients don''t get the same amount of tiredness (or) redness of the skin," said Powell.

"I had heard a fair amount about the traditional and I really didn''t want to have to do," said patient Julia Lamborn Gettinger.

Gettinger qualified for the week-long treatment after having a lumpectomy to remove her tumor. Partial breast radiation is only for those diagnosed with early stage breast cancer that hasn''t spread to the lymph nodes.

"A week after I finished the treatments I went on a girls'' weekend to Chicago that entailed a lot of walking and I was able to do it all," said Gettinger.

The actual physical dose of radiation that''s delivered is a little less than with traditional therapy. But the therapeutic effects are said to be equal to a full six weeks of therapy.

"We obviously don''t yet have the 10 years of follow up but we''re looking to think that it essentially should be as effective as those previous treatments," said Powell.