Progress of radiocutive seed implantation therapy for pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is one of the most deadly malignancies with an extremely poor prognosis. Though the radical surgery is currently first option for the treatment of PC, most of the patients are diagnosed in advanced stage not suitable for curative surgery. For these patients, chemotherapy or radiotherapy is the most common options, followed by poor clinical effects. Iodine-125 (¹²⁵I) seed implantation, as a form of radiotherapy, provides a new choice for PC patients due to its safety, effectiveness and minimal invasion. This paper aims to review the clinical applications, therapeutic effects and complications of radioactive seed implantation in treatment of PC.