Radiation therapy for the various subtypes of testicular seminoma

From 1964 to 1975 total of 53 consecutive patient with testicular seminoma were treated with irradiation post orchiectomy. The 3 year recurrence free survival, no evidence of disease (N.E.D.) was 97% for Stage I, and 93% for Stage II patients; 3 of 4 patients with Stage III disease were N.E.D. at 3 years. Elective irradiation to the mediastinum and supraclavicular area is indicated for Stage II but not for Stage 1. Spermatocytic and anaplastic subtypes have at least the same prognosis as classical seminoma and should be treated the same way. Two cases of seminoma with trophocarcinoma (embryonal carcinoma) are reported.     

Radiation therapy of seminoma: 17-year experience at the Joint Center for Radiation Therapy

One hundred and sixteen patients with stage I and II primary testicular seminoma were treated at the Joint Center for Radiation Therapy (JCRT) between 1968 and 1984. Complete follow-up is available for 114 patients (98%) with a median follow-up time of 6 years. Actuarial relapse-free survival (RFS) and survival for the entire group at 10 years were 94 and 86%, respectively, with 27 patients still at risk beyond 10 years. Actuarial RFS and survival at 10 years by stage were 97 and 92% for stage I, 93 and 81% for stage IIa, 100 and 100% for stage IIb, but only 75 and 51% for stage IIc. The difference in actuarial survival between stage IIc patients and stage I, IIa and IIb patients was significant (p less than 0.01). These results indicate that radiation therapy is excellent treatment for stage I and II seminomas as long as the largest mass of disease is not greater than 5 cm (stage IIc). Patients with stage IIc seminoma are now treated with cisplatin-containing combination chemotherapy followed by radiation therapy to areas of bulk disease. Although the majority of patients with stage II disease in this series received mediastinal irradiation, this is no longer recommended at the JCRT.     

Contemporary management of stage I testicular seminoma: a survey of Canadian radiation oncologists

Recently published studies clearly indicate that there are now several acceptable options for managing stage i testicular seminoma patients after orchiectomy. We therefore decided to survey Canadian radiation oncologists to determine how they currently manage such patients and to compare the results with previous surveys. Our results demonstrate that adjuvant single-agent chemotherapy is being considered as an option by an increasing proportion of radiation oncologists (although it is not considered the preferred option), the routine use of radiotherapy is declining, and surveillance is becoming increasingly popular and is recommended most often.     

Radiation therapy of seminoma of the testis

This study is a review of 66 patients with a diagnosis of testicular seminoma, treated at the Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Louisville, from 1959 to 1978. Sixty-four of the patients were diagnosed as pure seminomas and two as spermatocytic type. The age of the patients ranged from 16 to 75 years with a median of 39. Fifty-four patients (82%) presented with swelling or mass in the testis, 7 patients with pain, 1 patient with hydrocele, and 4 patients had seminoma diagnosed incidentally. The distribution was equal for both right and left sides. There were 39 (59%) and 27 (41%) patients in stages I and II, respectively. All stage I patients received only infradiaphragmatic irradiation by a "hockey stick" field, and the majority of them received a dose of 3,200-3,600 rads in 3-4 weeks time. Stage II patients received elective irradiation to the mediastinum and neck region, in addition to the infradiaphragmatic irradiation. The 5-year actuarial survival rates for stage I and II seminomas are 96% and 92%, respectively. There were no serious complications during follow-up. The role of elective irradiation in stage I disease is discussed with a brief review of the literature.     

Radiation therapy of seminoma of the testis

Seventy-three consecutive patients with seminom of the testis were treated by orcbiectomy followed by radiation alone. Sixty-six patients (9196) survived for more than five years. Forty-nine of fifty-six (87 %) survived for more than tan years. The five-year survival for 54 patients with Stage I disease was 100 % ; it was 92 % for 13 patients with Stage II disease. None of the six Stage III patients smviv All those who survived for five years were leading an active and normal life as of this writing. The Karoofsky's performance status was 90–100 for 50 patients who were followed is detail. Routine postoperative irradiation of the pare-aortic lymphatics was sufficient to produce a permanent cure without resorting to chemotherapy or prophylactic irradiation of mediastinum and supraclavicular regions. The optimal tissue does was 3000 rad. It may be increased to 3500–4000 rod by reducing the portal, but the total dose should be kept under 4000 rad. Pulmonary metastases were treated by bilateral whole hog irradiation of 1000–1500 rad followed by a coal boost dose of 2000–2500 rad. The treatment was well-tolerated by the patient. Large intra-abdominal metastases involving the internal organs should be treated by means other than radiation alone.     

Stage I testicular seminoma: rationale for postorchiectomy radiation therapy

The cases of 163 patients with Stage I seminoma of the testis treated by orchiectomy and adjuvant radiation therapy (XRT) were retrospectively evaluated to document outcome and to determine the prognostic significance of age side or primary, cryptorchidism, prior ipsilateral herniorrhaphy, status of the contralateral testis, history of prior testicular cancer, scrotal incision, postorchiectomy beta- human chorionic gonadotropin (BHCG) level, invasion of the epididymis, spermatic cord involvement, vascular invasion in the primary and mediastinal XRT. Of the prognostic factors evaluated, only spermatic cord involvement proved to be a significantly adverse factor. However, the true significance of cord involvement is unclear because the para-aortic regions were not irradiated in 2 of the patients in whom there was this finding, and in 1 of these there was failure in the retroperitoneum. Spermatic cord involvement was not a prognostically significant finding in patients whose para-aortic region was treated. For all 163 patients who underwent XRT, disease-free survival was 95% at 5, 10, and 15 years. Total survival corrected for intercurrent death was 97% from 5 through 20 years. Seven patients relapsed (4%) and 4 died of seminoma (2%). The XRT technique described is simple to implement and is extremely effective. Of 161 patients whose para-aortic region was irradiated, none developed subdiaphragmatic nodal recurrence. Only 1 patient developed acute leukemia. No patient developed any of the recognized delayed XRT-induced complications involving small bowel, large bowel, bladder, kidney, liver or spinal cord. The virtues and limitations of surveillance in Stage I testicular seminoma are discussed, and it is concluded that routine postorchiectomy XRT is the treatment of choice.     

Intracranial tumors in Kuwait: a 15-year survey

The dearth of literature on intracranial tumors (ICT) in Kuwait has necessitated this study whose objective is epidemiological. It is based on the records of the Department of Pathology, Al-Sabah Hospital, Kuwait, where virtually all brain biopsies in Kuwait were examined. Between 1995 and 2009, 439 males (53.41%) and 383 females (46.59%) had primary intracranial tumors (PICT). Most (69%) were younger than 50 years, with 16% children and adolescents and 4% elderly (≥70 years); meningioma (28%), pituitary adenoma (19%), glioblastoma (15%), astrocytoma (13%), and medulloblastoma (5%) were the most common. In childhood and adolescence, astrocytoma (35.34%) and medulloblastoma (22.56%) predominated. The mean age-adjusted incidence rate/100,000 was: PICT: 3.02; astrocytic tumors: 0.93; meningioma: 0.96; pituitary adenoma: 0.44; and medulloblastoma: 0.13. All showed a declining trend which was only statistically significant for medulloblastoma (P = 0.007). A modest correlation between the percentage of elderly in the general population and incidence rates was found (r = 0.411). Tumors with significant male preponderance were high-grade astrocytic tumors, silent pituitary adenoma (SA), and nerve sheath tumor. Meningioma had a female to male ratio of 2.24. The peak frequency for functional pituitary adenoma and females was in the age range of 20–29 years, while for SA and males it was 40–49 years. About 5% of ICT were metastatic, with cancers of breast (26%), lung (17%) and gastrointestinal (11%) origin as the most common. In conclusion, the epidemiology of PICT in Kuwait is characterized by low incidence rates and a distinct age distribution.     

Tinea incognito in Italy: a 15-year survey

Tinea incognito or steroid modified tinea is a dermatophytic infection in which topical or systemic steroids, administered as a result of dermatological misdiagnosis or preexisting pathologies, have modified the clinical appearance of the fungal infection, transforming the typical ringworm and mimicking other skin diseases. This is a retrospective study of the agents, clinical aspects, sources of infection of 200 cases (98 males, 102 females, mean age 42 years) of tinea incognito, observed in Siena and Milan, Italy, in the period 1987-2002. In order of decreasing frequency, Trichophyton rubrum, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, Epidermophyton floccosum, Microsporum canis, Microsporum gypseum, Trichophyton violaceum and Trichophyton erinacei were isolated. The clinical appearance of the infection was lupus erythematosus discoid-like, eczema-like, rosacea-like, especially on the face, impetigo-like and eczema-like on trunk and limbs. Less often the dermatophytosis resembled psoriasis, purpura, seborrhoic dermatitis and lichen planus. There was folliculitis in 9% of cases and dermatophytid in 3% of cases. Antimycotic therapy brought about clinical and mycological recovery in all patients except one, who had iatrogenic immunodepression.     

Staging, treatment, and results in testicular seminoma. A 12-year report

Sixty-one patients with histologically confirmed seminoma of the testis were treated by radiotherapy at The Johns Hopkins Hospital from 1975 to 1987. Fifty-seven patients remain disease-free, three patients died of intercurrent disease, and one patient (Stage IIB) died of widespread seminoma. Median follow-up for these patients is 5.5 years. Using a modified M.D. Anderson Hospital clinical staging system, 42 (69%) were Stage I, 16 (26%) were Stage IIA, and three (5%) were Stage IIB. Radiologic staging included both lymphangiogram (LAG) and abdominal computed tomography (CT) scan. Among Stage I disease, nine patients had false-positive CT scans, determined by negative LAG. Six patients had false-negative CT scans and were upstaged to Stage IIA by LAG. Treatment portals were altered in 15 of the 39 patients (38%) who had both LAG and CT scan. Overall actuarial survival (Kaplan-Meier method) was 97% at 5 years and 92% at 10 years. Five-year survival corrected for intercurrent disease was 100% for Stage I, 100% for Stage IIA, and two of three in Stage IIB patients. There were two distant treatment failures among the entire cohort. One patient who had Stage I disease was salvaged with local-field radiation and chemotherapy and is now without evidence of disease for 6 years. The second patient with Stage IIB seminoma receiving the same treatments disseminated and died. There were no significant acute toxicities or serious complications. In summary, proper staging with information gained from LAG and adequate radiation dose led to a 92% 10-year disease-free survival.     

Radiation therapy of testicular non-seminomas

The prognosis of 121 patients with a non-seminoma testicular tumor MTI or MTU was assessed. The clinical lymph node involvement and the T-category of the primary had a significant bearing on prognosis, which is completely determined by pulmonary relapse. The low-risk group (9% pulmonary relapse, all curable) is characterized by a primary category T1 or T2 with negative lymphangiography. The percentage of favorable patients is significantly higher if there is malignant teratoma intermediate (MTI) rather than malignant teratoma undifferentiated (MTU) histology. Systematic use of tumor markers (beta 1 -HCG and alpha fetoprotein), and perhaps an assessment of vascular invasion in the primary, might be useful to identify those patients in the unfavorable group who might benefit from elective chemotherapy.     

Management of testicular seminoma

Testicular seminoma is highly curable with currently available treatments. Today, there is good evidence that patients with Stage I disease can be treated equally well with either immediate adjuvant para-aortic and ipsilateral pelvic radiotherapy or close surveillance with treatment at the time of relapse. The decision as to which of these management strategies is adopted in an individual case is a complex function of physician preference, and the emotional, social, and economic circumstances of the patient. Ongoing research in Stage I seminoma is focused at reducing the side-effects of treatment either by modifying the radiation treatment plan or by using adjuvant chemotherapy in lieu of radiation. Stage II patients with small bulk retroperitoneal lymphadenopathy have a high probability of long-term disease control with radiotherapy. Patients with bulky Stage II disease or Stage III disease should be treated with cisplatin-based chemotherapy.     

Orchidectomy followed by radiotherapy in 176 stage I and II testicular seminoma patients: benefits of a 10-year follow-up study.

Results are presented for 176 patients with stage I and II primary testicular seminoma treated at the Dr. Daniel den Hoed Cancer Center (DDHCC) between 1975 and 1985. The median follow-up time was 7 years and 4 months. One-hundred and seventy-four (99%) of these patients were treated primarily with radiotherapy after extensive staging. According to the Royal Marsden Staging Classification, 132 patients (75%) were stage I, 8 (5%) were stage IIA, 21 (12%) were stage IIB, 9 (5%) were stage IIC and for 6 stage II patients a further subdivision was not possible. At 5 years the actuarial relapse-free survival and the actuarial survival were 95 and 99%, respectively, for stage I, and 77 and 91% for stage II. Prophylactic irradiation of the mediastinum has not been performed for stage II patients. Five stage II patients relapsed in the mediastinum. Four out of these five relapses were cured with chemotherapy, and in one case, in combination with radiotherapy, at the time of relapse. These results indicated that prophylactic irradiation of the mediastinum appeared to be unnecessary for stage II patients. Tumour markers were not useful in the discovery of metastases. Five years after treatment no relapses were seen. Therefore, it is proposed that a maximum follow-up of 5 years is sufficient to measure disease-free survival.     

Radiation therapy technology: manpower survey 1987

A chronic shortage of radiation therapy technologists exists in the United States. This report presents the data obtained in a 1987 survey of all radiation oncology facilities identified by the Patterns of Care master list. Of the 1,142 questionnaires mailed, 52% were returned. The survey identified 2,328 credentialed (ARRT) and 554 non-credentialed technologists employed in radiation therapy. Of this total of 2,882, 2,141 were identified as staff technologists. A total of 1,186 megavoltage units were identified, giving a ratio of 1.8 technologist/megavoltage unit. Two hundred sixty open funded positions and 230 unfunded positions for radiation therapy technologists were identified. The report compares the results of this 1987 Radiation Therapy Technology Manpower Survey with the results of the three previous surveys conducted in 1975, 1977, and 1981. Whereas this comparison demonstrates that progress has been made, current trends in allied health education are expected to have a negative impact on recruitment into radiation therapy technology. Program directors report that the number and quality of applicants to all allied health education programs is declining, and this trend in radiation therapy technology is substantiated by a drop in the number of students enrolled in programs, from 970 in 1986-87 to 777 in 1987-88. Our discussion addresses the areas of new program development, recruitment, retention, innovative programs, and overseas recruitment.     

Lung carcinoma with metastasis to testicular seminoma.

Tumor-to-tumor metastases are uncommon. The most frequent donor tumors are the lung, whereas renal cell carcinoma is by far the most common recipient. In this report the authors describe a lung tumor that metastasized to a testicular seminoma. This is the first reported case of tumor-to-tumor metastases in which seminoma of the testis is the recipient. The authors performed mucin and immunohistochemical studies on this case and on ten cases of nonseminomatous germ cell tumors containing embryonal carcinoma and endodermal sinus tumor for comparison. Mucin positivity as well as immunoreactivity for epithelial membrane and carcinoembryonic antigens were confined to metastatic adenocarcinoma in this case, whereas Ki-1 and alpha-fetoprotein immunostaining were restricted to the ten control cases of germ cell tumors. Although the majority of second malignant components found in a seminoma are other nonseminomatous germ cell components, the rare possibility exists that a second malignant component is a metastasis from elsewhere in the body.     

Transient neurological adverse effects following low dose radiation therapy for early stage testicular seminoma.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to estimate the rate of neurological adverse effects following radiotherapy for testicular seminoma and to disclose possible dose-related effects. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All seminoma patients (n=346) treated 1980-2001 at our department with radiotherapy as the only treatment modality following orchiectomy constitute the study group (median follow-up 10 years). Since 1980, clinical data including possible side effects have systematically been recorded in these patients. These records were used to identify men with possible neurological adverse effects. Univariate logistic regression was used to estimate dose-related effects. RESULTS: Overall, 11 men (3.2%) with neurological symptoms probably related to radiotherapy were identified. Seven men treated with 25.2-36 Gray presented with sensory symptoms about 2 months following radiotherapy. These symptoms resolved in all but one after 1-3 months. The remaining four men (dose 36-40 Gray) had motor impairment which lasted at least one year, but none had persistent pareses at long-term follow-up. There was a statistically significant (p=0.02) increase in rate of motor symptoms with higher dose. CONCLUSIONS: Although motor impairment is unlikely to occur at current standard doses for seminomas, physicians should be ware of the sensory symptoms these men may exhibit.     

Treatment and prognosis of testicular seminoma

Although testicular germ cell tumor is a relatively uncommon disease, it is a relatively common type of malignant tumor among young men. Seminoma accounts for approximately 50% of all germ cell testicular tumors. Since the vast majority of patients with seminoma present with early-stage disease and the disease responds well to treatment, almost all of the patients are cured. Patients who have stage I disease without obvious metastatic lesions have two treatment options, surveillance or adjuvant retroperitoneal radiotherapy, following inguinal orchiectomy. Stage IIA disease with a relatively small retroperitoneal lymph node metastasis is generally treated by retroperitoneal radiation therapy, although systemic chemotherapy with carboplatin is an alternative treatment. For patients with bulky retroperitoneal lymph node or distant metastases (stage IIB, III), systemic chemotherapy including cisplatin and etoposide appears to be the standard approach. Recently, 85% to 90% of patients with stage III disease are cured. Thus, the current therapeutic goal is cure of the disease with the minimum of treatment sequelae.     

Management of stage I testicular seminoma

Adjuvant treatment options for stage I seminoma include surveillance, radiation, and hemotherapy. Despite excellent results for both adjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy, many concerns have been raised in regards to the potential long-term toxicities of these treatments. To minimize the burden of treatment, there has been a shift away from adjuvant treatments for stage I testicular seminomas toward surveillance protocols for seminoma survivors. This article reviews the evidence for all adjuvant treatment options for stage I testicular seminomas with a particular focus on surveillance.     

Delayed presentation of primary testicular seminoma

A case is reported here of delayed presentation of primary testicular seminoma, 9 years after initial presentation with retroperitoneal disease. The diagnostic difficulty associated with primary extragonadal germ cell tumour is emphasized.