P-59 Results of DARS: a randomised phase III trial of dysphagia-optimised intensity modulated radiotherapy (DO-IMRT) versus standard IMRT (S-IMRT) in oropharyngeal (OPC) and hypopharyngeal (HPC) cancer

HPV‐related oropharyngeal cancer: preventable and treatable if recognised early

“…Radiotherapy treatment is given as an outpatient once a day over a six‐week period, commonly delivering doses of 65Gy in 30 fractions to the known sites of disease and 54Gy in 30 fractions to elective nodal tissues at risk of harbouring microscopic disease 15 . Common acute side‐effects of radiotherapy include tiredness, skin irritation, a dry mouth with ulcers and thick secretions, loss of taste, pain and difficulty swallowing, and reduced appetite.…”

“…Patient‐reported speech and swallowing function is generally excellent, but a small proportion of patients are left with significant oropharyngeal dysphagia, which can necessitate long‐term enteral feeding via a gastrostomy 21 . Optimisation of radiotherapy to reduce the dose delivered to structures associated with dysphagia and aspiration may reduce this risk, with superior patient‐reported swallowing function at one year found in a recent randomised controlled trial employing this approach 15 …”

“…14 Radiotherapy treatment is given as an outpatient once a day over a six-week period, commonly delivering doses of 65Gy in 30 fractions to the known sites of disease and 54Gy in 30 fractions to elective nodal tissues at risk of harbouring microscopic disease. 15 Common acute side-effects of radiotherapy include tiredness, skin irritation, a dry mouth with ulcers and thick secretions, loss of taste, pain and difficulty swallowing, and reduced appetite. Frequent late sideeffects of radiotherapy include persistent dry mouth, altered taste, skin changes and fibrosis of underlying soft tissues, lymphoedema affecting the lower face and neck, dental problems, swallowing dysfunction and hypothyroidism.…”

“…21 Optimisation of radiotherapy to reduce the dose delivered to structures associated with dysphagia and aspiration may reduce this risk, with superior patient-reported swallowing function at one year found in a recent randomised controlled trial employing this approach. 15 HPV natural history HPV, a DNA virus, is a very common sexually transmitted infection. 22 Most infections occur in late teens and early 20s.…”