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A shorter,
more convenient course of radiation therapy after breast lumpectomy
may be as effective as the longer, more common therapy, according
to researchers at the Hamilton Regional Cancer Center in Ontario,
Canada.
Radiation
therapy after a lumpectomy significantly reduces the risk
of recurrence of breast cancer, but the length of the course
of therapy needed has been under debate.
In the
United States, radiation is given in smaller doses over several
weeks, but in England and Canada, larger doses are given over
a shorter period of time.
Researchers
compared breast cancer recurrence and cosmetic outcome in
1,234 women randomly assigned to receive either a more intensive
course of radiation over 22 days or a less intensive regimen
over 35 days. All of the women had undergone lumpectomies
for invasive breast cancers that had not spread to the lymph
nodes.
The shorter
course of radiation therapy did not cause an increase in recurrence
of breast cancer or a worse cosmetic outcome, according to
the study published in the Journal of the National Cancer
Institute.
After
five years, local recurrence-free survival was 97.2 percent
in the shorter course group compared with 96.8 percent in
the extended course group. There was no difference in disease-free
or overall survival between the two groups. The cosmetic outcome
was about the same in both groups as were toxic side effects
from the radiation.
"A
shorter fractionation schedule will lessen the burden of treatment
for women, many of whom may also receive adjuvant chemotherapy,
and will have important quality-of-life benefits with respect
to convenience and less time away from home and work,"
concluded the researchers.
Source:
Breast Cancer
Week of August 11, 2002
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