Spire Hartswood Hospital Announces Use of SpaceOAR® Hydrogel for Prostate Cancer Radiation Therapy

Spire Hartswood Hospital Announces Use of SpaceOAR® Hydrogel for Prostate Cancer Radiation Therapy

Spire Hartswood Hospital in Brentwood, Essex has added a new technology for men choosing to undergo radiation therapy for prostate cancer. The new addition, SpaceOAR hydrogel, is a protective spacer between the prostate and the rectum. It has been clinically proven to reduce the risk of side effects during and after radiation treatment.

In April 2015, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cleared SpaceOAR hydrogel. In a prospective, randomized, multi-center clinical trial in the United States, patients treated with SpaceOAR hydrogel prior to prostate cancer radiation treatment demonstrated bowel, urinary, and sexual benefits through a median of three years of follow-up. The study found that the patients that did not receive SpaceOAR hydrogel experienced a clinically significant decline in bowel, urinary, and sexual quality of life eight times more often than patients that received SpaceOAR hydrogel.

It is a minimally invasive outpatient procedure with local or general anaesthesia. Patients can immediately resume their normal activities. The gel stays in place for approximately three months and is then naturally absorbed and cleared in the urine in about six months. (1,2)

For more information, visit:
- Spire Hartswood Hospital - SpaceOAR Hydrogel treatment page
- SpaceOAR website

1. DA Hamstra, N Mariados, J Sylvester, et al. Continued Benefit to Rectal Separation for Prostate Radiation Therapy: Final Results of a Phase III Trial. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys; 2017 Apr 1; 97(5): 976- 985
2. DA Hamstra, et al. Sexual Quality of Life Following Prostate Intensity Modulated Radiotherapy (IMRT) with a Rectal/Prostate Spacer: Secondary Analysis of a Phase III Trial. Published online: July 19, 2017 Practical Radiation