Bassett Among First to Participate in Pancreatic Cancer Clinical Trial

Bassett Cancer Institute in Cooperstown is among the first cancer centers in the United States to participate in an international, multi-center clinical trial for patients with inoperable, advanced, or metastatic pancreatic cancer. The treatment is highly targeted radiation therapy that offers a unique approach to treatment. The highly targeted radiation therapy - Alpha Tau Medical Ltd.’s Alpha DaRT® - is implanted into the cancer to deliver treatment from inside the tumor.

“We are pleased to continue our years-long collaboration with Alpha Tau by taking part in this clinical trial. Bassett Cancer Institute is always looking to bring emerging, innovative therapies to our local region,” said Timothy Korytko, MD, Chief Radiation Oncologist at Bassett Healthcare Network. “Not only do our patients benefit, but the medical community as a whole benefits when new treatments are studied, especially for cancers that can be difficult to treat like pancreatic cancer.

Bassett Cancer Institute is one of only a number of cancer centers in the United States, Canada, and Israel that will participate in the clinical trial. Only 30 patients will be enrolled before the trial is closed to new patients.

Over 3,700 people are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer each year in New York, according to the state Department of Health. Approximately 2,800 New Yorkers die from it each year. Over 90 percent of state residents diagnosed are 55 years old or older.

Patients are potentially eligible for the clinical trial if they are newly diagnosed, unable to have surgery, and have completed up to four cycles of standard chemotherapy. Alpha DaRT sources are implanted into the primary tumor, delivering radioactive alpha particles, known to be destructive to tumor cells, directly to the tumor. Throughout the study, patients continue to receive chemotherapy, as determined in their treatment plan, in addition to the Alpha DaRT therapy.

In 2023, Bassett Cancer Institute was selected as a clinical trial site for Alpha DaRT as an investigational treatment for recurrent skin cancers. At that time, Bassett Cancer Institute was the only site in New York State outside of New York City to receive regulatory approval to conduct that trial.