Association of Pretreatment Hippocampal Volume With Neurocognitive Function in Patients Treated With Hippocampal Avoidance Whole Brain Radiation Therapy for Brain Metastases: Secondary Analysis of NRG Oncology/RTOG 0933.

Purpose: Hippocampal volume (HV) is an established predicting factor for neurocognitive function (NCF) in neurodegenerative disease. Whether the same phenomenon exists with hippocampal-avoidant whole brain radiation therapy is not known; therefore, we assessed the association of baseline HV with NCF among patients enrolled on RTOG 0933.

Methods And Materials: Hippocampal volume and total brain volume were calculated from the radiation therapy plan.

Methodological Comparison of Mapping the Expanded Prostate Cancer Index Composite to EuroQoL-5D-3L Using Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Data: Secondary Analysis of NRG/RTOG 0415.

Purpose: To compare the predictive ability of mapping algorithms derived using cross-sectional and longitudinal data.

Methods: This methodological assessment used data from a randomized controlled noninferiority trial of patients with low-risk prostate cancer, conducted by NRG Oncology (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00331773), which examined the efficacy of conventional schedule versus hypofractionated radiation therapy (three-dimensional conformal external beam radiation therapy/IMRT).

Mapping expanded prostate cancer index composite to EQ5D utilities to inform economic evaluations in prostate cancer: Secondary analysis of NRG/RTOG 0415.

Purpose: The Expanded Prostate Cancer Index Composite (EPIC) is the most commonly used patient reported outcome (PRO) tool in prostate cancer (PC) clinical trials, but health utilities associated with the different health states assessed with this tool are unknown, limiting our ability to perform cost-utility analyses. This study aimed to map EPIC tool to EuroQoL-5D-3L (EQ5D) to generate EQ5D health utilities.

Methods And Materials: This is a secondary analysis of a prospective, randomized non-inferiority clinical trial, conducted between 04/2006 and 12/2009 at cancer centers across the United States, Canada, and Switzerland.

Psychological Treatment for Patients Receiving Radiation: Results of NRG Oncology/RTOG 0841.

Purpose: NRG/RTOG 0841 assessed the feasibility of a depression screening procedure in patients receiving radiation therapy (RT). As a secondary endpoint, availability and barriers to psychosocial care data were collected in hopes of providing recommendations for improved psychosocial care among patients receiving RT.

Methods And Materials: Patients starting RT were prospectively recruited and assessed with self-reported distress screening tools.

Optimal prescription isodose line in SBRT for lung tumor treatment with volumetric-modulated arc therapy.

It is crucial to spare lung when treating early stage lung carcinoma with stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) for minimizing the radiation induced toxicities, such as radiation pneumonitis and late fibrosis. A retrospective study was performed with a combination of approaches to determine the optimal range of prescription isodose line (P-IDL) within which lung tissue was best spared in SBRT plans with Volumetric-Modulated Arc Therapy (VMAT) and Monte-Carlo-like dose calculation algorithm. Twenty clinically-delivered SBRT lung plans were optimized using traditional LINAC MLC based approaches: an average P-IDL of (88.