1,721,085 research outputs found
Pushing the limits of hypofractionation for adjuvant whole breast radiotherapy
No full textRandomised trials report no disadvantages for hypofractionation based on 2.67 Gy fractions of adjuvant whole breast radiotherapy in terms of local tumour control and late adverse effects. Current 15- or 16-fraction schedules may not represent the limits of this approach, and limited data suggest that fewer larger fractions can be delivered safely provided appropriate downward adjustments are made to the total dose. Therapeutic gain will be undermined if breast cancer proves to be, on average, significantly less sensitive to fraction size than the dose-limiting late reacting normal tissues. If so, shortening overall treatment time might wholly or partially offset these limitations, and these uncertainties are addressed in ongoing or planned trials. Meanwhile, the experience of accelerated partial breast irradiation suggests a strong volume effect for late normal tissue damage. Schedules that may be safe when delivered to small partial volumes cannot be assumed to be safe if delivered to larger partial volumes or to the whole breast. Based on current evidence, testing the effectiveness of a 5-fraction schedule of hypofractionated whole breast radiotherapy appears to be a realisable research objectiv
Hypofractionated adjuvant whole breast radiotherapy: progress and prospects
No full textPublished results of randomised trials involving >7000 women confirm the safety and efficacy of hypofractionated schedules of adjuvant radiotherapy for women with early breast cancer using fraction sizes between 2 and 3 Gy assuming appropriate downward adjustments to total dose. Unnecessary concerns relating to heart tolerance, suboptimal dose distribution and duration of follow up need not discourage the routine adoption of 15- or 16-fraction schedules in women treated by breast conservation surgery for early breast cancer. Regardless of fractionation regimen, dose escalation to the index quadrant in high risk subgroups will result in a greater relative increase in late adverse effects than tumour control, a therapeutic disadvantage that can only be overcome by exploiting a marked dose-volume effect. A 15-fraction schedule of whole breast radiotherapy is unlikely to represent the lower limits of hypofractionation, and the preliminary results of a 5-fraction regimen are encouraging.<br/
Update of the START (Standardisation of Breast Radiotherapy) trial on behalf of the trial management group
No full textHypofractionated whole-breast radiotherapy for women with early breast cancer: myths and realities
No full textLetter. Intensity-modulated radiotherapy for the treatment of breast cancer
Full text linkIn the systematic review of intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) in the treatment of breast cancer reported in Clinical Oncology by Dayes and colleagues [1], the only prospective randomised clinical trial (n = 306) testing forward-planned IMRT to have reported a 5 year outcome for adverse effects [2] was excluded on the spurious grounds that no outcomes of interest were reported (Appendix 3). In this trial, the control arm patients were 1.7 times more likely to have a change in breast appearance than the IMRT arm patients after adjustment for the year of photographic assessment (95% confidence interval 1.2–2.5, P = 0.008)
Quality of life (QL) assessment of anxiety and depression in the START Trial for women with early stage breast cancer, on behalf of the Trial Management Group
No full text
- …
