Acute side effects of intraoperative electron radiotherapy of breast cancer.

Abstract

112 Background: Intraoperative boost irradiation as part of breast-conserving therapy is a perfect method to adequately capture the high risk tumor relapse area. The most homogeneous dose distribution is achieved with electrons. Intraoperative radiotherapy (IOERT) as a boost for breast cancer releases a high single dose of radiation to the breast tissue; therefore acute toxicity is of particular attention. To date there is only inadequate information available on breast cancer patients treated with IORT using electrons applied as a boost. We therefore analyzed the acute toxicity after radiotherapy with 10 Gy as a boost with a minimum follow-up of 3 months. Methods: A total of 69 patients treated with IOERT (10Gy with 5, 7 and 9 MeV electrons) with a dedicated robotic linac (NOVAC 7, New Radiant Technology, Aprilia, Italy) to the tumor bed during breast-conserving surgery as a boost followed by whole-breast radiotherapy (WBRT, 50.4 Gy; 1.8 Gy per fraction) were included in this study. All patients underwent a retrospective follow-up (median, 8 months; range 1-17 months) regarding acute side effects within the first three months. Toxicities were documented using the common toxicity criteria (CTC 4.0 of the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer). Results: The IOERT was well tolerated. As a side effect there was one patient with seroma. Two patients developed chronic pain in the irradiated breast. Two patients developed a secondary wound healing. The remaining patients did not develop any grade 3 or 4 side effects. The observed toxicity rates were not influenced by age, tubus size, electron energy or systemic therapy. Conclusions: After IOERT of the breast using electrons we did not find any unexpected acute toxicity rates.

Endogenous ROS-Mediated Covalent Immobilization of Gold Nanoparticles in Mitochondria: A “Sharp Sword” in Tumor Radiotherapy

“…3,4 Hence, to improve the radiotherapeutic efficacy, large or multiple doses of radiation are usually administered in clinical practice, which inevitably kills cancer cells along with surrounding normal cells, leading to serious side effects to the body. 5,6 To realize efficient radiotherapy with a low dosage of radiation, some radiosensitizers, such as nitroimidazoles and nitrobenzene derivatives, have been exploited for the clinical treatment of various tumors by boosting the radiation damage on cancer cells. 7 Nevertheless, the potential toxicity and lack of specificity severely hinder their extensive clinical applications.…”

“…However, accurate diagnosis and efficient treatment of malignant tumors still face a great challenge. Radiation therapy (RT) that utilizes high-energy photon beams to kill cancer cells is one of the most effective therapeutic modalities for malignant tumors in clinical practice. , Approximately 60–70% of cancer patients undergo RT, but only 40% can be cured owing to the low radiosensitivity of cancer cells. , Hence, to improve the radiotherapeutic efficacy, large or multiple doses of radiation are usually administered in clinical practice, which inevitably kills cancer cells along with surrounding normal cells, leading to serious side effects to the body. , To realize efficient radiotherapy with a low dosage of radiation, some radiosensitizers, such as nitroimidazoles and nitrobenzene derivatives, have been exploited for the clinical treatment of various tumors by boosting the radiation damage on cancer cells . Nevertheless, the potential toxicity and lack of specificity severely hinder their extensive clinical applications.…”