CommonSpirit Health Physicians Are First in Utah to Successfully Pioneer New Radiation Therapy for Treating Brain Tumors

SALT LAKE CITY, UT (June 10, 2025) – Physicians at Holy Cross Hospital – Jordan Valley are the first in Utah to utilize a new type of radiation therapy, called Gamma Tiles, to treat brain tumors including gioblastomas, meningiomas, and brain metastasis. To date, three patients have been treated with this new therapy at the Cancer Center.

One of those patients is Vicky Pentz, a 47-year-old mother of three from West Jordan. Vicky is no stranger to cancer. Her mother died of breast cancer eight years ago. Her husband was diagnosed with melanoma in 2018. Two years ago, Vicky noticed a lump in her breast.

“As soon as I felt the lump, I figured I’d better do something,” she said.

Vicky went to Holy Cross Hospital – Jordan Valley and was diagnosed with breast cancer. As she was going through treatment – chemotherapy, a lumpectomy, radiation therapy, and immunotherapy – her husband passed away. Then last fall, as her breast cancer otherwise appeared to be under control, she experienced a severe headache, went to the Emergency Department, and underwent a brain CT scan and a MRI.

“I found out I had two tumors in my brain,” she said. The breast cancer had metastasized.

That diagnosis made her feel pretty hopeless, she said. But then in consultation with Dr. Joel MacDonald, a neursurgeon, she learned she would be a good candidate for GammaTile therapy. She had heard about the procedure earlier from her oncologist. She didn’t hesitate when Dr. MacDonald mentioned the option.

“Yep, that’s what I’m doing. Sign me up. There’s still hope – it’s a new thing,” she said.

On Dec. 3 she had one surgery, then 10 days later had the second tumor removed. GammaTiles were placed on each occasion. She did very well with the procedures and continues to feel great,. An MRI three months after surgery showed excellent results with no evidence of cancer.

KSL TV recently featured this new brain tumor therapy at Holy Cross Jordan Valley Cancer Center. 

The tiles, made of an absorbable collagen material embedded with radioactive seeds, are placed along the edges of the surgery cavity immediately after the tumor is removed. Neurosurgeons and radiation oncologists work collaboratively to perform this therapy. The collagen material is eventually absorbed after a few months while the formerly radioactive seeds remain safely in place.

The benefit of GammaTiles is that they deliver a high-dose radiation directly to the tumor cavity, where it is most needed to help prevent regrowth while giving much less radiation to healthy brain tissue. They also allows immediate radiation treatment, rather than having to wait days or weeks after surgery for traditional radiation treatment.

“This is a significant advancement in the treatment of brain tumors. This new procedure provides an effective, more targeted radiation treatment option and offers a promising dose of hope for our patients,” said Leland Rogers, MD, radiation oncologist at Holy Cross Hospital – Jordan Valley Cancer Center.

Dr. Rogers has collaborated with neurosurgeon Joel MacDonald, MD, on this new procedure. Dr. MacDonald surgically removes the tumor and then Dr. Rogers implants the GammaTiles, which only adds a few minutes to the surgery. By implanting the radioactive tiles, which are each about the size of a postage stamp, it prevents an additional surgery later on. Another advantage of this therapy is that the radioactive seeds are made of radioactive Cesium-131, which has a short half-life and has a negligible hazard to family members who reside with the patient. The therapy has been approved by the FDA.

“An additional benefit of this therapy is that it allows the patient to focus on healing, and in some cases without needing frequent appointments for traditional longer course radiation therapy,” Dr. Rogers said.