Implications of Radiosensitizer and Radioprotector Factors in Refining the Dose-Volume Constraints and Radiobiological Models

Abstract

Radiotherapy is a cornerstone of the modern treatment of many types of cancer, having both curative and palliative roles. It is estimated that more than half of cancer patients will need radiation therapy in the course of evolution. The goal of radiotherapy is to maximize tumor control, reducing adverse effects on normal tissues in close proximity at the same time. Improving the therapeutic ratio is the main goal of the efforts made to improve the technique and accuracy of the radiotherapy by using the targeting of the tumor volume with the help of the imaging guide and the dose conformation around the target volume. The use of the multi-leaf collimator (MLC) allowed a better coverage of the target volume in the irradiation field, thus reducing the unnecessary irradiation of healthy tissues. The use of radioprotective agents and radiosensitizers is another strategy to maximize the effect of radiotherapy. Recently, interest has focused on the design of irradiation protocols that exploit the differences in biology in terms of the response to irradiation between tumor cells and normal tissues.