International journal of radiation oncology, biology, physics
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Int. J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. · Jul 2012
A specific miRNA signature correlates with complete pathological response to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in locally advanced rectal cancer.
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small, noncoding RNA molecules that can be down- or upregulated in colorectal cancer and have been associated to prognosis and response to treatment. We studied miRNA expression in tumor biopsies of patients with rectal cancer to identify a specific "signature" correlating with pathological complete response (pCR) after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy. ⋯ A set of 13 miRNAs is strongly associated with pCR and may represent a specific predictor of response to chemoradiotherapy in rectal cancer patients.
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Int. J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. · Jul 2012
Long-term outcome after radiotherapy in patients with atypical and malignant meningiomas--clinical results in 85 patients treated in a single institution leading to optimized guidelines for early radiation therapy.
Previously, we could show that the new World Health Organization (WHO) classification of meningiomas significantly correlated with outcome in patients with atypical and anaplastic histology. In the present work, we analyzed our long-term experience in radiotherapy for atypical and malignant meningioma diagnosed according to the most recent WHO categorization system. ⋯ RT resulted in improvement of preexisting clinical symptoms; outcome is comparable to other series reported in the literature. RT should be offered after surgical resection after initial diagnosis to increase progression-free survival as well as overall survival. Novel clinical concepts are under investigation to further improve outcome in patients with high-grade meningiomas.
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Int. J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. · Jul 2012
Prone whole-breast irradiation using three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy in women undergoing breast conservation for early disease yields high rates of excellent to good cosmetic outcomes in patients with large and/or pendulous breasts.
To report our institution's experience using prone positioning for three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3D-CRT) to deliver post-lumpectomy whole breast irradiation (WBI) in a cohort of women with large and/or pendulous breasts, to determine the rate of acute and late toxicities and, more specifically, cosmetic outcomes. We hypothesized that using 3D-CRT for WBI in the prone position would reduce or eliminate patient and breast size as negative prognostic indicators for toxicities associated with WBI. ⋯ In patients with higher BMI and/or large-pendulous breasts, delivering prone WBI using 3D-CRT results in favorable toxicity profiles and high excellent to good cosmesis rates. Higher BMI was associated with moist desquamation, but prone positioning removed BMI and breast size as factors for poorer cosmetic outcomes. This series adds to the growing literature demonstrating that prone WBI may be advantageous in select patients.
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Int. J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. · Jul 2012
High-dose-rate brachytherapy as monotherapy delivered in two fractions within one day for favorable/intermediate-risk prostate cancer: preliminary toxicity data.
To report the toxicity profile of high-dose-rate (HDR)-brachytherapy (BT) as monotherapy in a Human Investigation Committee-approved study consisting of a single implant and two fractions (12 Gy × 2) for a total dose of 24 Gy, delivered within 1 day. The dose was subsequently increased to 27 Gy (13.5 Gy × 2) delivered in 1 day. We report the acute and early chronic genitourinary and gastrointestinal toxicity. ⋯ Favorable-risk prostate cancer patients treated with a single implant HDR-BT to 24-27 Gy in two fractions within 1 day have excellent tolerance with minimal acute and chronic toxicity. Longer follow-up is needed to confirm these encouraging early results.
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Int. J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. · Jul 2012
Spot scanning-based proton therapy for intracranial meningioma: long-term results from the Paul Scherrer Institute.
To assess the long-term clinical results of spot scanning proton therapy (PT) in the treatment of intracranial meningiomas. ⋯ PT is a safe and effective treatment for patients with untreated, recurrent, or incompletely resected intracranial meningiomas. WHO grade and tumor volume was an adverse prognostic factor for local control.