The Society of Interventional Radiology plans to hold a legislative briefing on Capitol Hill Monday, June 5, to raise awareness about a cutting-edge treatment.
SIR said the event will feature Rep. Donald Payne Jr., D-N.J., who is chair of the Congressional Men’s Health Caucus. The lawmaker introduced a resolution last year, designating June 13-19 as National Men’s Health Week.
Interventional radiologists plan to use the event to highlight the importance of prostate artery embolization, or PAE, which involves injecting tiny particles into arteries that feed the gland. The procedure reduces blood flow to help treat benign prostatic hyperplasia, a noncancerous enlargement of the prostate.
“The biggest barrier to treatments like prostate artery embolization is public awareness,” Alda L. Tam, MD, MBA, president of the Society of Interventional Radiology, said in a May 31 announcement. “Highlighting innovative, evidence-based treatments like this will help equip medical professionals with knowledge about the latest treatment advancements available to their patients so they can positively impact their lives.”
Rep. Payne will speak alongside interventional radiologist Shivank Bhatia, MD, and urologist Bruce R. Kava, MD, both with the University of Miami. A patient whose benign prostatic hyperplasia was treated successfully with PAE will round out the panel.
The briefing is slated to take place at 1 p.m. in room 401 at the Cannon House Office Building. It’s open to the public, with details on registration found here.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.