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Advanced RT for Neck and Head Cancer May be Better than Standard Radiation

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Patients with head and neck cancer who are treated with an advanced form of radiation therapy may experience fewer side effects and be less likely to die from their disease as opposed to patients who receive standard radiation therapy.

This discovery comes from an analytical study published early online in Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. The study sets up so-called intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) as both a safe and beneficial treatment for patients with head and neck cancer.

Patients with head and neck cancer usually undergo radiation treatments, which can cause major side effects including dry mouth, difficulty swallowing, and bone destruction. Research has shown that IMRT, an advanced radiation procedure that is designed to treat tumors while sparing normal tissues, can result in less dry mouth and dental problems than traditional radiation; however, studies have not yet determined how IMRT affects patients' overall survival.

To investigate the matter further, Beth Beadle, MD, PhD, of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, and her team analyzed a large database of 3172 patients treated for head and neck cancer at different clinics across the United States between 1999 and 2007.

After a mid-point follow-up time of 40 months, 84.1 percent of patients treated with IMRT had not died from cancer, as opposed to 66.0 percent of patients treated with standard radiation. Analyzing each anatomic subsite on its own, all respective subgroups of patients treated with IMRT had better overall survival than those treated with traditional radiation.

"This analysis revealed that patients treated with IMRT have less cancer-related deaths than those treated with traditional techniques. So, not only do they have fewer side effects, but they also have fewer life-threatening recurrences," said Beadle.

“The research has important relevance to national discussions of health care delivery and health care policy because IMRT is more expensive than traditional radiation therapy. An investment in IMRT may be cost-effective because it is better at both preventing side effects and cancer recurrence," she explained.

However, Beadle notes that more research is required in order to confirm the findings of the study.

 


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