Doctors are testing a new way to ease the painful side effects of radiation for breast cancer patients.

Penny Cecil said she was stunned when she was diagnosed with breast cancer a year ago.

"I had no problems. No pain. No lumps. Nothing," said Cecil.

She said the discovery was made in a routine mammogram.

Cecil said she was determined to survive for the sake of her daughter.

"I just couldn't imagine her going through life without her mother," said Cecil.

Cecil had a lumpectomy and radiation, but doctors offered something else. A way to prevent the burning and pain that comes with radiation.

"Nobody had thought about preventing it, and I think it is wonderful to prevent something rather than have to take care of it later," said Dr. Maitland DeLand, a radiation oncologist.

In a small study, women received a treatment called LED photomodulation after each radiation session. The low-energy light is already used by dermatologists to repair skin cells and reduce wrinkles. It provides a protective effect for the skin and stimulates collagen to regenerate, according to DeLand.

Ninety-five percent of women who received the treatment had mild or no burning or pain from radiation, Local 4 reported. The LED treatment is painless and takes 30 seconds, the station reported.

The LED treatment did make radiation better for Cecil.

"I felt nothing. No pain. My prognosis is great. It has been a year. As of now, cancer-free," said Cecil.

Women who received the LED treatment also noticed an improvement in their surgical scars. The LED equipment is not available in most cancer centers, but researchers said they hope their study will change that, Local 4 reported.

Learn More About Study

BACKGROUND:

According to the American Cancer Society, nearly 213,000 women in the United States will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer this year. Nearly 41,000 women will die from the disease. Currently, more than 2 million women living in the United States have been treated for breast cancer. The risk of a woman developing breast cancer in her lifetime is one in eight. The chance of dying from it is one in 33.

RADIATION:

Many women with early-stage breast cancer are opting for a lumpectomy to remove the cancerous breast lump and some of the normal tissue around it. After a lumpectomy, these women will often receive about six weeks of radiation.

DeLand, who works at OncoLogics in Lafayette, La., said of all women diagnosed with breast cancer, "I would say at least 60 percent of the women get radiation treatment."

The side effects of radiation not only include fatigue, but also radiation dermatitis, skin peeling and swelling of the soft tissue. Radiation dermatitis is when the skin turns pink or reddish like a sunburn, and it's painful. Because of the pain and the breakdown of the skin where the radiation is given, women often must interrupt their treatment schedules and take a break from the radiation.

DeLand said, "It's an accepted toxicity. It is sort of like you know this is going to happen. Basically, you are just treating the symptoms after it happens."

She said the skin reactions occur in up to 90 percent of women who receive radiation after lumpectomy.

PREVENTING THE SIDE EFFECTS:

Rather than simply accepting that the burning and pain are normal side effects, DeLand embarked on a clinical trial involving LED photomodulation to determine if it could prevent the side effects altogether.

LED photomodulation is a treatment that uses light-emitting diodes at a certain wavelength and frequency to stimulate the skin cells to repair themselves. This LED treatment is widely used by dermatologists across the country to reduce wrinkles and improve appearance.

DeLand tested the LED treatment in 19 women who had radiation for breast cancer. The LED photomodulation was done right after each radiation session. The LED treatment is easy, noninvasive and painless, DeLand said. Women simply sit in front of a flashing light panel for 30 seconds, and they're done.

DeLand said, "It basically stimulates the collagen to regenerate. It also interferes with inflammatory pathways, which is what makes your skin pink. That is what gets your cells to start breaking down."

THE RESULTS:

Results of DeLand's study show 18 of the 19 women who received LED photomodulation had only mild or no radiation dermatitis. In a control group of 28 women who received radiation but did not receive the LED treatment, all of them had some degree of skin reactions.

One unexpected benefit of the LED photomodulation treatment is that the scar from the lumpectomy also improved. The appearance of the scar was much better in the women who received the LED treatment than in those who did not receive the treatment.

DeLand said, "I love making life better for these women who have to face cancer. If I can make it better for them, that is what motivates me."

The LED photomodulation device can be found in most dermatology clinics across the country, but it is not something most hospitals or radiation oncologist groups would have on site. DeLand urges women to talk to their radiation oncologists about this treatment before getting radiation.

She will soon start another trial to test how effective the LED treatment is when it is given before and after each radiation session.