Australia Calling, Hi Alanm nice to see you back on line. You can forget the Surgeons unless it is for NA. Most do not have experience with RT. only seeing results in the treatment of keloids. I found Dr Borg an Oncologist in Adelaide had an interest in the treatment of Non Malignant diseases and had treated patients for Heel Spur ,Dupuytren and Ledderhose using the Protocol used by Prof. Seegenschmiedt. In 07 I went to Germany to Prof. Seegenschmiedt and my Surgeon advised that I should expect having holes burnt through my hands as the result of RT. Quite frankly even most GP's have no idea. I've had 4 grafts on my hands and one medico looked at my grafts and asked if the graft areas were the result of RT. As I stated most surgeons are only are aware of what is happening in their own field of medicine. Regards

Edited 05/15/11 19:56

I am commencing RT via Dr David Schlect at Premion (Wesley Medical Centre) next week. I have decided to proceed with this as the disease has been more active over the last month or so with increasing tingling, numbness, aching hand, nodules but no contraction. He has treated several other patients recently. I will let you know how it goes.

Dr David Schlect at Premion (Wesley Medical Centre, Brisbane) agreed that at my stage of progression I was a good candidate for RT. I am a 58 yr old male and have cords and nodules in the left hand with no contractions. The disease has been relatively stable for several years (maybe 5) but had become more active over the last few months with increasing tightness, aching, tingling and numbness in one finger. When stretching my hand straight or reaching for something I frequently got an acute short pain shooting up the affected finger. My father had severe contraction of the same finger and my older brother has DD.
I decided to seek RT after realising that surgery is highly likely to provide temporary relief, with a high chance of recurrence whereas, according to recent literature reports, RT if given prior to any contraction has a higher chance of stopping progression and at best even reversing the disease. I had some concerns over RT and a potential increase in cancer risk. However, given my age and the relatively low number of X-rays I have had in my life and the risks associated with surgery, on balance I felt comfortable with my decision.
We decided on treatment for 2 blocks of 5 daily treatments at 3 Gy/treatment, 6 weeks apart. Dr Schlect could not see any particular reason for splitting the treatment other than this is what appears to have worked in the European setting.
The first treatment was on 15th of June and was quite quick and painless with most time spent in setting it up. Subsequent treatments were on the 16th, 17th, 20th and 21st June 2011. Treatment was given lying down with my hand immobilised and flat and lasted for about one minute. The treatment area was traced out on my hand each time based on a transparency prepared in a planning visit. A 3mm thick piece of wax was placed on my hand to optimise beam penetration to just below the skin surface. Treatment was given with a Varian Truebeam machine. This is a different machine from that described in the publications from Germany but one that is routinely used for cancer RT. As I understand, the beam from this machine will not pass right through the hand.
By the 4th treatment, I think there was less tightness but it is hard to be sure. Pain associated with stretching out my hand appeared to have diminished but again it is hard to be certain. There were no other effects on the cords, nodules or numbness. There were no skin problems at this time.
It is now about 4 weeks post-treatment. I do not think that there has been any change to the cords or nodules. The numbness may have diminished slightly. There is no more pain associated with stretching my hand and there is definitely less tightness. There have been no skin problems. I aim to start the second round of treatment in a few weeks time.
After listening to several seminars on DD and reading around the topic it is interesting to speculate on why this works. I suspect that fibroblasts are malfunctioning and laying down collagen in an inappropriate fashion. These cells most likely release signals that trigger adjacent cells to also produce collagen. Perhaps there may also be cell division although if this is the case it must be very slow. The cells must also be relatively non-motile or not function in the same way away from the immediate location; which is unusual for fibroblasts. RT will tend to affect the more active cells. Hence the malfunctioning cells and their neighbours will be susceptible to radiation and are likely to die. As there seemed to be a rapid effect, there may also be a direct affect on the collagen but it is a little hard to imagine a mechanism by which RT would affect collagen that has already been laid down.
I will provide a further update after the second round of treatment.
Stephen

Great step-by-step explanation. I did not see any great improvement until after my 2nd round of RT. I saw the greatest changes about 1 month after the 2nd round and it continued to improve over the next year. The most noticable change was the disappearance of the nodule, regression of the cord into my palm, being able to flex my hand, and clinch my fist without pain or stiffness.

Good luck and take pictures of your hand so you can see if changes occur.

Lori

I'm 3 months after the second round of RT in Germany. I had the dry skin but that's mostly cleared. I do have aches and some pain in the palm especially when making a fist. I don't notice any obvious softening or reduction in nodules or cords. I do compare against photo's taken before treatment and think that any apparent reductions in my case are due to a change in the skin tone. Still hoping that once it's settled down the DD will be dormant.