Bone Pain Due To Cancer Metastasis? A Nuclear Medicine Therapy Option Is Available.

Facing a cancer diagnosis that has spread to the bones is certainly a difficult challenge, especially when accompanied by pain. Our hospital provides palliative care using Samarium-153 EDTMP, a modern therapeutic modality to relieve bone pain caused by cancer metastasis.

WHAT IS SAMARIUM-153 EDTMP THERAPY? Samarium-153 EDTMP (153Sm-EDTMP) is a therapeutic radiopharmaceutical specifically used for bone pain palliative therapy due to bone metastasis. This therapy works systemically, targeting all osteoblastic lesions in the body through a single intravenous injection. It is important to know that this is a palliative therapy to relieve pain, not a curative therapy to cure the cancer itself. This therapy works together with the primary oncology management currently undergone by the patient.

CANDIDATES FOR THIS THERAPY

• Patients with osteoblastic bone metastatic lesions from various primary cancers, such as breast, prostate, and lung cancer.

• Patients with multiple bone pain that is difficult to control with conventional analgesics alone.

• Patients who wish to reduce reliance on high-dose opioid analgesics and their side effects.

• Osteoblastic lesions in patients must be confirmed through bone scan imaging.

• Patients must have adequate bone marrow function.

MAIN ADVANTAGES OF SAMARIUM-153 EDTMP

• Works Systemically: Reaches all bone lesions in the body at once in a single injection.

• Not a Narcotic: Effectively relieves severe pain without the risk of dependence, tolerance, or euphoric/sedative effects like opioids.

• Long-Lasting: The pain relief effect of a single injection can last for about a month or more.

• Simple Procedure: Given as a single intravenous injection, minimizing the need for prolonged hospitalization.

• National Product: This medicine is produced domestically by BRIN in collaboration with PT Kimia Farma, and has held an official BPOM Distribution License Number since 2016.

• Covered by BPJS: This therapy service is covered by BPJS Kesehatan specifically for the palliative indication of metastatic bone pain.

SUCCESS RATE AND SAFETY Various clinical studies show that this therapy is proven to relieve pain in 65–80 percent of patients. Generally, this pain relief effect begins to be felt within one week post-injection.