Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, Va., is using MammoSite, an accelerated partial breast irradiation (APBI) device, that delivers higher dose radiation therapy to breast cancer patients, from the Marlborough, Mass.-based Cytyc, a Hologic company.

The procedure is used exclusively in women who have undergone breast conservation therapy as opposed to mastectomy. To qualify for APBI, candidates must be 45 years or older with a single, small tumor (less than 3 cm in diameter), no evidence of metastasis, and a tumor cavity that is surrounded by a good margin of healthy tissue, according to the hospital.