International journal of radiation oncology, biology, physics
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Int. J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. · Nov 2004
Multicenter Study Comparative StudyPatterns of radiotherapy practice for patients with carcinoma of the uterine cervix: a patterns of care study.
To determine the influence of research findings and evolving technology on the practice of radiotherapy in patients with carcinoma of the cervix. ⋯ The sharp increase in the use of chemotherapy in 1999 suggested rapid application of the results from randomized trials. However, considerable heterogeneity in practice patterns remains, particularly in the use of brachytherapy. The practice at small facilities appears to differ significantly from that at larger facilities in several respects, with a statistically significantly larger proportion of treatments at small facilities failing to meet current guidelines for optimal treatment.
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Int. J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. · Nov 2004
Comparative StudyHigh-dose-rate brachytherapy alone versus whole breast radiotherapy with or without tumor bed boost after breast-conserving surgery: seven-year results of a comparative study.
To report the 7-year results of a prospective study of accelerated partial breast irradiation (APBI) using interstitial high-dose-rate brachytherapy and compare the treatment results with those achieved by standard, whole breast radiotherapy (WBRT), with or without a tumor bed boost (TBB). ⋯ Accelerated partial breast irradiation using interstitial high-dose-rate implants, with proper patient selection and quality assurance, yields similar 7-year results to those achieved with standard breast-conserving therapy. APBI does not increase the risk of elsewhere breast failures.
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Int. J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. · Nov 2004
Clinical TrialPredictors of acute esophagitis in patients with non-small-cell lung carcinoma treated with concurrent chemotherapy and hyperfractionated radiotherapy followed by surgery.
To evaluate possible clinical and dosimetric predictors of acute esophagitis in patients with locally advanced non-small-cell lung carcinoma treated in a prospective Phase I-II trimodality protocol. ⋯ In patients undergoing concurrent high-dose chemotherapy and hyperfractionated radiotherapy, a low pretherapy body mass index and percentage of esophagus volume treated to >50 Gy were significantly associated with acute Grade 2 or worse esophagitis.
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Int. J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. · Nov 2004
Comparative StudyDose conformation of intensity-modulated stereotactic photon beams, proton beams, and intensity-modulated proton beams for intracranial lesions.
This study evaluates photon beam intensity-modulated stereotactic radiotherapy (IMSRT) based on dynamic leaf motion of a micromultileaf collimator (mMLC), proton beams, and intensity-modulated proton therapy (IMPT) with respect to target coverage and organs at risk. ⋯ The addition of intensity modulation improves the conformality of mMLC-based SCRT. Conformation of dose to the PTV is comparable for IMSRT, protons, and IMPT. Concerning the sparing of OAR, IMSRT is equivalent to IMPT, and IMPT is superior to conventional protons. The advantage of protons lies in the lower integral dose.
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Int. J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. · Nov 2004
Development of methods for beam angle optimization for IMRT using an accelerated exhaustive search strategy.
The purpose of this article is to explore the use of the accelerated exhaustive search strategy for developing and validating methods for optimizing beam orientations for intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT). Combining beam-angle optimization (BAO) with intensity distribution optimization is expected to improve the quality of IMRT treatment plans. However, BAO is one of the most difficult problems to solve adequately because of the huge hyperspace of possible beam configurations (e.g., selecting 7 of 36 uniformly spaced coplanar beams would require the intercomparison of 8,347,680 IMRT plans). ⋯ Exhaustive search with fast IMRT algorithms provides a novel and realistic approach to study the characteristics of IMRT dose distributions as a function of beam angles and to design practical BAO strategies for IMRT planning.