Clinical oncology : a journal of the Royal College of Radiologists
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Clin Oncol (R Coll Radiol) · Nov 2008
Selective axillary node sampling and radiotherapy to the axilla in the management of breast cancer.
Axillary treatment for patients with early-stage breast cancer can be associated with considerable morbidity. Techniques, such as axillary node sampling (ANS) and, more recently, sentinel node biopsy, in combination with radiotherapy have the potential to reduce toxicity. A retrospective review of axillary treatment in patients with early-stage breast cancer treated at our institution between 1997 and 2003 was carried out to assess the outcome and morbidity of ANS in combination with radiotherapy. ⋯ Selective ANS with the removal of a minimum of four nodes guides optimal locoregional treatment with good local control rates, low overall morbidity and may obviate the need for a second surgical procedure.
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Clin Oncol (R Coll Radiol) · Oct 2008
Improving observer variability in target delineation for gastro-oesophageal cancer--the role of (18F)fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography.
To evaluate the effect of the addition of fused positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) imaging vs computed tomography alone in the identification of the gross tumour volume (GTV) in patients with gastro-oesophageal carcinoma. ⋯ The addition of FDG-PET to computed tomography-based planning for the identification of primary tumour GTV in patients with gastro-oesophageal carcinoma decreases both inter-observer and intra-observer variability.
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Clin Oncol (R Coll Radiol) · Sep 2008
Multicenter StudyPalliative radiotherapy for women with breast cancer.
Palliative radiotherapy (PRT) plays an important role in women with metastatic breast cancer. However, not all cancer patients with an indication for PRT receive it. The aim of this study was to measure the use of PRT for women who have died of breast cancer in the Canadian province of Alberta, and to identify factors that might affect this use. ⋯ There are many factors that influence the receipt of PRT in Alberta that are unrelated to patient need. The education of physicians and patients, as well as the establishment of more radiotherapy facilities, will help to improve the use of PRT.
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Clin Oncol (R Coll Radiol) · Jun 2008
Did the pattern of practice in the prescription of palliative radiotherapy for the treatment of uncomplicated bone metastases change between 1999 and 2005 at the rapid response radiotherapy program?
Since 1999, randomised clinical trials and meta-analyses have reported equal efficacy of pain relief from single- and multiple-fraction radiotherapy for bone metastases. A number of factors, including limited radiotherapy resources, waiting times, and patient convenience, suggest single fraction to be the treatment of choice for patients. However, international patterns of practice indicate that multiple fractions are still commonly used. This study examined whether dose-fractionation schemes used for the treatment of bone metastases at the Rapid Response Radiotherapy Program (RRRP) at the Odette Cancer Centre have changed since 1999. ⋯ Between 1999 and 2005, the use of single-fraction radiotherapy increased, corresponding to publications showing equal efficacy of pain relief between single and multiple fractions in the management of uncomplicated bone metastases. However, about a third of patients still received multiple fractions.