Women who receive a shorter course of whole breast radiation therapy for early stage disease experience less toxicity and improved quality of life compared to those who undergo a longer course of treatment, researchers report from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. The studies conducted recently in the United Kingdom and Canada however have been privy to using the most advanced technologies available, have still shown equal rates of recurrence and survival.
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According to the researchers, this irradiation method is a comparably newer, better treatment for breast cancer.
Whereas hypo fractionated radiation therapy gives the exact dose of radiation to the patient in less time and with high and required amount at a time. M.D. Anderson had, in fact, only adopted this treatment in 2013, and only one-third of breast cancer patients who should receive the treatment end up receiving it. At six month follow up, toxicities were generally similar between the HF-WBI and CF-WBI patients, although the HF-WBI patients were noted to have less fatigue, and better ability to care for their family, compared to those treated with CF-WBI. “She said, “[This study] suggests that women who undergo the accelerated radiation not only benefit from the shorter length of time for treatment, but they also suffer less severe side effects.
The M.D. Anderson study looked at 267 women, 40 and older, who had been diagnosed with stage 0 to stage 2 breast cancer and had undergone a lumpectomy.
Differences in the Acute Toxic Effects of Breast Radiotherapy by Fractionation Schedule: Comparative Analysis of Physician-Assessed and Patient-Reported Outcomes in a Large Multicenter Cohort.
In a randomized, unblinded trial, 287 women received CF-WBI or hypofractionated whole-breast irradiation.
Factors that presented risk for breast cancer were also accounted for, with 76 percent of the women being obese or overweight. They then compared the toxic effects experienced by those who underwent hypofractionation (HF) and conventional fractionation (CF) during the course of treatment (through 7 days after treatment) and during the follow-up period (posttreatment days 8-210).
A total of 267 female breast cancer sufferers, all aged 40 and up, were covered by the M.D. Anderson study.
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Radiation therapy to the breast has been given in smaller doses over a long period, which has been a long-time standard. He says, “This study fills in a missing piece in the literature”. “For too long, longer-course treatment has been the standard”.
