Alfonso Gomez-Iturriaga

Phase I-II trial of perioperative high-dose-rate brachytherapy in oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancer.

BACKGROUND To determine the feasibility of combined perioperative high-dose-rate brachytherapy (PHDRB) and intermediate-dose external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) as an alternative to full-dose adjuvant EBRT in patients with unirradiated squamous cell cancer (SCC) of the oral cavity and oropharynx. METHODS AND MATERIALS Forty patients were treated with surgical resection and PHDRB. PHDRB dose was 4Gy b.i.d.x4 (16Gy) for R0 resections and 4Gy b.i.d.x6 (24Gy) for R1 resections, respectively. External beam radiotherapy (45Gy in 25 fractions) was added postoperatively. Patients with Stage III, IVa tumors, and some recurrent cases received concomitant cisplatin-paclitaxel chemotherapy during EBRT. RESULTS The rate of protocol compliance was 97.5%. Eleven patients (27.5%) developed RTOG Grade 3 or greater toxicity. Four patients (10%) presented complications requiring a major surgical procedure (RTOG 4), and one patient died of bleeding (RTOG 5). Three complications (7.5%) occurred in the perioperative period, and 8 (20.0%) occurred more than 3 months after the completion of the treatment program. Severe complications were more frequent in posteriorly located implants than in anterior implants (p=0.035). After a median follow-up of 50 months for living patients (range, 2.5-86.1+), the 7-year actuarial rates of local and locoregional control were 86% and 82%, respectively; and the 7-year disease-free survival and overall survival rates were 50.4% and 52.3%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS PHDRB can be integrated into the management of patients with resected cancer of the oral cavity who are candidates to receive postoperative radiation or chemoradiation. The local control and toxicity rates were similar to those expected after standard chemoradiation. PHDRB was associated with high toxicity in posterior locations, and the scheduled PHDRB dose was shifted to the closest lower level.

Early breast cancer treated with conservative surgery, adjuvant chemotherapy, and delayed accelerated partial breast irradiation with high-dose-rate brachytherapy

PURPOSE To evaluate the feasibility and intermediate-term results of conservative surgery, adjuvant chemotherapy, and delayed accelerated partial breast irradiation (APBI) with high-dose-rate brachytherapy. METHODS AND MATERIALS Between 2000 and 2007, a total of 26 patients with a median age of 54 years were treated with conservative surgery followed by adjuvant chemotherapy and exclusive high-dose-rate brachytherapy. Inclusion criteria followed the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 95-17 trial guidelines. The tumor bed was marked at the time of surgery (n = 2) or before brachytherapy (n = 24). The brachytherapy procedure was performed at a median of 22 weeks after surgery. A median of 14 brachytherapy catheters were placed in three to four parallel planes. A dose of 34.0 Gy in 10 b.i.d. fractions given over 5 consecutive days was prescribed to the clinical target volume (CTV90). RESULTS After a median followup of 53 months (range, 6.8-81), Radiation Therapy Oncology Group Grade 1-2 events and Grade 3 events were observed in 10 (38.4%) patients and 3 (11.5%) patients, respectively. No Grade 4-5 events were observed. Patients rated their cosmetic result as excellent (37.5%), good (50.0%), fair (8%), or poor (4%) based on the Wazers Criteria. The 6-year actuarial local, elsewhere in the breast, and distant control rates were 100%, 96.2%, and 96.2%, respectively. Six-year disease-free survival and overall survival were 92.3% and 96.2%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Patients undergoing surgery and adjuvant chemotherapy can still be candidates for APBI. Optimal visualization of the internal lumpectomy scar before implantation is mandatory. Cosmetic results may be slightly worse due to the interaction between chemotherapy and APBI, and technical refinements may be needed in this group of patients.

Impact of intraoperative MRI/TRUS fusion on dosimetric parameters in cT3a prostate cancer patients treated with high-dose-rate real-time brachytherapy.

Purpose The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of intraoperative MRI/TRUS fusion procedure in cT3a prostate cancer patients treated with high-dose-rate (HDR) real-time brachytherapy. Material and methods Prostate gland, dominant intraprostatic lesions (DILs), and extracapsular extension (ECE) were delineated in the pre-brachytherapy magnetic resonance images (MRI) of 9 consecutive patients. The pre-implant P-CTVUS (prostate clinical target volume) was defined as the prostate seen in the transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) images. The CTVMR includedthe prostate with the ECE image (ECE-CTV) as defined on the MRI. Two virtual treatment plans were performed based on the MRI/TRUS fusion images, the first one prescribing 100% of the dose to the P-PTVUS, and the second prescribing to the PTVMR. The implant parameters and dose-volume histogram (DVH) related parameters of the prostate, OARs, and ECE were compared between both plans. Results Mean radial distance of ECE was 3.6 mm (SD: 1.1). No significant differences were found between prostate V100, V150, V200, and OARs DVH-related parameters between the plans. Mean values of ECE V100, V150, and V200 were 85.9% (SD: 15.1), 18.2% (SD: 17.3), and 5.85% (SD: 7) when the doses were prescribed to the PTVUS, whereas ECE V100, V150, and V200 were 99.3% (SD: 1.2), 45.8% (SD: 22.4), and 19.6% (SD: 12.6) when doses were prescribed to PTVMR (p = 0.028, p = 0.002 and p = 0.004, respectively). Conclusions TRUS/MRI fusion provides important information for prostate brachytherapy, allowing for better coverage and higher doses to extracapsular disease in patients with clinical stage T3a.

Salvage high-dose-rate brachytherapy for histologically confirmed macroscopic local relapsed prostate cancer after radical prostatectomy

Purpose To evaluate the feasibility of the use of real-time magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) fusion guided high-dose-rate brachytherapy (HDR-BT) +/– external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) in patients with histologically-proven local relapse after radical prostatectomy. Material and methods We retrospectively reviewed 13 patients treated with real-time MRI-TRUS fusion HDR-BT for a local relapse of prostate cancer after radical surgery. All patients underwent multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI) to confirm the presence of macroscopic lesions in prostate bed, and choline positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) to rule out nodal or distant metastases. Local failure was confirmed by transrectal biopsy. Patients without previous EBRT received 1 fraction of 15 Gy with HDR-BT plus hypofractionated EBRT (37.5 Gy in 15 fractions). Two patients received 2 fractions of 12 Gy with HDR-BT without EBRT. Follow-up visits were at 1, 3, 6 months, and every 6 months thereafter. Results After a median follow-up of 7 months, all patients showed an appropriate biochemical response. Median prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels before treatment, 1 month, and 6 months after HDR-BT were 2.62 ng/ml (range: 1.55-9.61), 0.97 ng/ml (range: 0.12-3.14), 0.23 ng/ml (range: 0.1-0.74), respectively. Five patients (42%) experienced acute grade 1 GU toxicity and 1 patient (8%) suffered from grade 2 GU toxicity. Regarding gastrointestinal (GI) toxicity, 5 patients referred grade 1 acute toxicity and 1 grade 2 (proctitis). No late toxicity has been observed so far. Conclusions MRI-TRUS fusion guided salvage HDR-BT +/– EBRT is a feasible procedure for patients with local macroscopic relapse in tumor bed after radical prostatectomy. Exquisite selection of patients through mpMRI and choline PET/CT is crucial to avoid overtreatment. A larger number of patients and longer follow-up are required in order to draw more solid conclusions regarding the effectiveness of this strategy.

High dose rate brachytherapy for prostate cancer: A prospective toxicity evaluation of a one day schedule including two 13.5 Gy fractions

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE High dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy (BT) provides a highly conformal method of dose delivery to the prostate. The purpose of this study is to prospectively determine the toxicity of the treatment protocol of 13.5 Gy × 2 fractions. MATERIALS AND METHODS From 2010 through 2017, 119 patients with low (71%) or intermediate-risk prostate cancer were prospectively treated in a single institute with HDR-BT at 13.5 Gy × 2 fractions within one day. Median follow-up time was 4.4 years. RESULTS Actuarial rates of no biochemical evidence of disease, overall survival and metastasis-free survival for all patients were 96%,98% and 98%, respectively. The cumulative incidence of acute grade 2 and 3 genitourinary (GU) toxicity was 9% and 2%, respectively. The corresponding incidences of late GU toxicity were 18% and 1%. No grade ≥4 of either type of toxicity was detected. Multivariate analysis showed that having higher international prostate symptom score (IPSS; P = 0.041) or higher V200 (P = 0.013) was associated with a higher risk of experiencing any grade of acute GU toxicity. In addition, patients having a higher IPSS (P = 0.019) or a higher V150 (P = 0.033) were associated with a higher grade >1 acute GU toxicity. CONCLUSIONS The findings of this study show that HDR-BT 13.5 Gy × 2 as monotherapy was safe and effective for prostate cancer patients with low-intermediate risk.

Analysis of predictors of pain response in patients with bone metastasis undergoing palliative radiotherapy: Does age matter?

To evaluate whether age is a predictor of pain response after radiotherapy for painful bone metastasis (BM).