Effect of Race and Ethnicity on Risk of Radiotherapy Toxicity and Implications for Radiogenomics

AimsPatient factors affect the risk of radiotherapy toxicity, but many are poorly defined. Studies have shown that race affects cancer incidence, survival, drug response, molecular pathways and epigenetics. Effects on radiosensitivity and radiotherapy toxicity are not well studied. The aim of the present study was to identify the effects of race and ethnicity on the risk of radiotherapy toxicity.Materials and methodsA systematic review was carried out of PubMed, Ovid Medline and Ovid Embase with no year limit. PRISMA 2020 guidelines were followed. Two independent assessors reviewed papers.ResultsOf 607 papers screened, 46 fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Papers were published between 1996 and 2021 and involved 30–28,354 individuals (median 433). Most involved patients with prostate (33%), breast (26%) and lung (9%) cancer. Both early and late toxicities were studied. Some studies reported a higher risk of toxicity in White men with prostate cancer compared with other races and ethnicities. For breast cancer patients, some reported an increased risk of toxicity in White women compared with other race and ethnic groups. In general, it was difficult to draw conclusions due to insufficient reporting and analysis of race and ethnicity in published literature.ConclusionsReporting of race and ethnicity in radiotherapy studies must be harmonised and improved and frameworks are needed to improve the quality of reporting. Further research is needed to understand how ancestral heritage might affect radiosensitivity and risk of radiotherapy toxicity.     

Changes in the Management of Patients having Radical Radiotherapy for Lung Cancer during the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic in the UK

AimsIn response to the COVID-19 pandemic, guidelines on reduced fractionation for patients treated with curative-intent radiotherapy were published, aimed at reducing the number of hospital attendances and potential exposure of vulnerable patients to minimise the risk of COVID-19 infection. We describe the changes that took place in the management of patients with stage I–III lung cancer from April to October 2020.Materials and methodsLung Radiotherapy during the COVID-19 Pandemic (COVID-RT Lung) is a prospective multicentre UK cohort study. The inclusion criteria were: patients with stage I–III lung cancer referred for and/or treated with radical radiotherapy between 2nd April and 2nd October 2020. Patients who had had a change in their management and those who continued with standard management were included. Data on demographics, COVID-19 diagnosis, diagnostic work-up, radiotherapy and systemic treatment were collected and reported as counts and percentages. Patient characteristics associated with a change in treatment were analysed using multivariable binary logistic regression.ResultsIn total, 1553 patients were included (median age 72 years, 49% female); 93 (12%) had a change to their diagnostic investigation and 528 (34%) had a change to their treatment from their centre's standard of care as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Age ≥70 years, male gender and stage III disease were associated with a change in treatment on multivariable analysis. Patients who had their treatment changed had a median of 15 fractions of radiotherapy compared with a median of 20 fractions in those who did not have their treatment changed. Low rates of COVID-19 infection were seen during or after radiotherapy, with only 21 patients (1.4%) developing the disease.ConclusionsThe COVID-19 pandemic resulted in changes to patient treatment in line with national recommendations. The main change was an increase in hypofractionation. Further work is ongoing to analyse the impact of these changes on patient outcomes.     

T1~T2期乳腺癌保乳术后化疗后程同步大分割放疗前瞻性Ⅰ期临床研究

目的 前瞻性评估T1~T2期乳腺癌保乳术后化疗后程大分割放疗的不良反应和耐受性，以及在缩短治疗时间、减轻患者经济负担等方面的价值。方法 共入组20例T1~T2期乳腺癌保乳术后患者，所有患者于末次多西他赛化疗前开始大分割放疗。观察急性放射反应、治疗完成率及无病生存率、住院时间及住院费用等。结果 治疗完成率100%。主要不良反应为血液学毒性（白细胞减少）及皮肤反应，患者均可耐受。中位随访时间为30.1个月，随访率100%。美容效果良好率100%。平均总治疗时间为4周，总住院治疗费用节省约1万元。21个月无病生存率为100%。结论 T1~T2期乳腺癌保乳术后可耐受同步大分割放化疗，局部控制好，美容效果佳，且具有较高的卫生经济学价值。     

Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy Versus Metastasectomy in Patients With Pulmonary Metastases From Soft Tissue Sarcoma

The lung is the preferred site of metastasis from soft tissue sarcoma (STS). This systematic review aims to evaluate the outcomes of stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) and metastasectomy (MTS) for the treatment of lung metastases from STS. A systematic review was carried out according to the PRISMA protocol. PubMed, Medline, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Ovid and Web of Knowledge databases were searched for English-language articles to December 2018 using a predefined strategy. Retrieved studies were independently screened and rated for relevance. Data were extracted by two researchers. In total, there were 1306 patients with STS: 1104 underwent MTS and 202 had SBRT. The mean age ranged from 40 to 55.8 years in the MTS group and from 47.9 to 64 years in the SBRT group. The cumulative death rate was 72% (95% confidence interval 59–85%) in the MTS group and 56% (38–74%) in the SBRT group. The cumulative mean overall survival time was 46.7 months (36.4–57.0%) in the MTS group and 47.6 months (33.7–61.5%) in the SBRT group. The cumulative rate of patients alive with disease was 5% (2–9%) in the MTS group and 15% (6–36%) in the SBRT group. Finally, the cumulative rate of patients alive without disease in the two groups was 19% (9–29%) and 20% (10–50%), respectively. Our study showed that local treatment of pulmonary metastases from STS with SBRT, compared with surgery, was associated with a lower cumulative overall death rate and similar overall survival time and survival rates without disease. By contrast, SBRT was associated with a higher survival rate with disease than MTS. Large randomised trials are necessary to confirm these findings and to establish whether SBRT may be a reliable option for early stage disease.     

儿童室管膜瘤的临床研究进展

室管膜瘤是一种原发于神经上皮的中枢神经系统肿瘤，病变累及脑和脊髓，多发于儿童。基因分型的新分类方法，为室管膜瘤的治疗和预后评估提供了更为可靠的依据。室管膜瘤对辅助治疗的敏感性低是造成患儿预后较差的重要原因之一。该文对近年来儿童室管膜瘤的分型、诊断、治疗策略等进行综述。     

The detection and management of complications following the treatment of liver metastases

While once considered as incurable systemic disease, treatment options for liver metastases have increased over the last 30 years and safety has improved dramatically, such that for a selected group of patients the hope of cure can now be offered with radical treatment, and low morbidity interventions can be offered which prolong survival, even in patients with more widely disseminated disease. Advances have been made in selection and surgical technique for liver resection and several adjuncts to resection now exist in the form of portal vein embolization, thermal ablation and targeted drug or radiotherapy delivery options. A natural consequence of these developments has been the delivery of services within fewer specialist units, with the result that later complications of therapy may present to local hospitals, rather than directly to the specialist centres. This article will describe the current common liver-directed therapies and outline the presentation and management of their complications.     

食管癌根治性放疗剂量研究进展

同步放化疗是不可手术局部晚期食管癌的标准治疗模式,国际推荐根治性放疗剂量为50.0~50.4Gy,但中国食管癌与西方国家在病理类型、生物学行为等方面大有不同,行根治性放疗剂量仍倾向于60Gy。增加放疗剂量能否带来生存获益成为临床亟待解决的问题。有研究认为高剂量放疗可提高局控率、改善生存,但也有研究认为提高剂量未能带来生存获益,且可增加不良反应事件发生率。因此,本文就食管癌根治性放疗剂量对预后的影响进行探讨,并通过放化疗后疗效评估对放疗剂量做出适当调整,以期达个体化放疗。