Advanced image guidance more precisely targets sarcomas, reduces long-term side effects

the Oncology Nurse Advisor take:

Image-guided radiotherapy can effectively treat soft tissue sarcomas in the extremities, significantly reducing long-term side effects without effecting survival rates, according to RTOG 0630, a multi-year, multi-institution phase 2 clinical trial conducted by the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG), now conducting research as NRG Oncology.

For this study, more than 100 patients with extremity-based soft tissue sarcomas (STS) received pretreatment radiation therapy that used advanced imaging technology to target a substantially smaller area than typically targeted in treating this type of cancer.

A series of daily presurgery images of the tumor were digitally integrated with previous scans to plan a custom-tailored radiation dose that minimized exposure to adjacent healthy tissue.

Assessments 2 years later showed that long-term side effects were 10.5%. Results from a previous study in which patients received radiation to a larger area showed long-term side effects of 37%.

“Although radiation oncology is a technologically intense discipline, wisdom in using these technologies is essential for optimal outcomes,” commented the lead author of the paper.