Radiotherapy and oncology : journal of the European Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology
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Comparative Study
A treatment planning study comparing volumetric arc modulation with RapidArc and fixed field IMRT for cervix uteri radiotherapy.
A treatment planning study was performed to evaluate the performance of the novel volumetric modulated single arc radiotherapy on cervix uteri cancer patients. Conventional fixed field IMRT was used as benchmark. ⋯ RapidArc was investigated for cervix uteri cancer showing significant improvements in organs at risk and healthy tissue sparing with uncompromised target coverage leading to better conformal avoidance of treatments w.r.t. conventional IMRT. This, in combination with the confirmed short delivery time, can lead to clinically significant advances in the management of this highly aggressive cancer type. Clinical protocols are now advised to evaluate prospectively the potential benefit observed at the planning level.
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Cisplatin-based chemo-irradiation (CRT) is increasingly used for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). We aimed to assess hearing deterioration due to low-dose cisplatin chemoradiation and to compare the observed hearing loss with hearing loss in our previously described high-dose cisplatin CRT cohort. ⋯ Low-dose cisplatin chemo-irradiation for HNSCC is a relatively safe treatment protocol with respect to ototoxicity.
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Comparative Study
Automated non-coplanar beam direction optimization improves IMRT in SBRT of liver metastasis.
To investigate whether automatically optimized coplanar, or non-coplanar beam setups improve intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) treatment plans for stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) of liver tumors, compared to a reference equi-angular IMRT plan. ⋯ Compared to an equi-angular beam setup, computer optimized non-coplanar setups do result in substantial improvements in IMRT plans for SBRT of liver tumors.
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Since 1982, the Radiation Oncology Group of the EORTC (EORTC ROG) has pursued an extensive Quality Assurance (QA) program involving all centres actively participating in its clinical research. The first step is the evaluation of the structure and of the human, technical and organisational resources of the centres, to assess their ability to comply with the current requirements for high-tech radiotherapy (RT). ⋯ The use of the FQ helps maintain the minimum quality requirements within the EORTC ROG network: recommendations are made on the basis of the analysis of its results. The present analysis shows that modern RT techniques are widely implemented in the clinic but also that ERDA should be performed more frequently. Repeated assessment using the FQ is warranted to document the future evolution of the EORTC ROG institutions.