Publications by authors named "Alison C Tree"

Purpose: Liver metastases are a significant clinical challenge in cancer management, often representing a stage of disease in which curative treatment is still possible. Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) has emerged as a promising modality for treating these metastases, offering a noninvasive approach with potential for high efficacy. This systematic review and meta-analysis provides a comprehensive analysis of the efficacy and safety of SBRT in treating liver metastases, and practice recommendations are provided.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background And Objective: Randomised data on patient-reported outcomes (PROs) for stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) and prostatectomy in localised prostate cancer are lacking. PACE-A compared patient-reported health-related quality of life after SBRT with that after prostatectomy.

Methods: PACE is a phase 3 open-label, randomised controlled trial.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: We aimed to establish if stereotactic body radiotherapy to the prostate can be delivered safely using reduced clinical target volume (CTV) to planning target volume (PTV) margins on the 1.5T MR-Linac (MRL) (Elekta, Stockholm, Sweden), in the absence of gating.

Methods: Cine images taken in 3 orthogonal planes during the delivery of prostate SBRT with 36.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

HERMES is a phase II trial of MRI-guided daily-adaptive radiotherapy (MRIgART) randomising men with localised prostate cancer to either 2-fractions of SBRT with a boost to the tumour or 5-fraction SBRT. In the context of this highly innovative regime the dose delivered must be carefully considered. The first ten patients recruited to HERMES were analysed in order to establish the dose received by the targets and organs at risk (OARS) in the context of intrafraction motion.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates factors affecting oncologic outcomes in patients with biochemical recurrence (BCR) of prostate cancer after initial definitive treatment like surgery or radiotherapy.
  • It encompasses a systematic review of 37 studies, analyzing 10,632 patients, and identifies specific risk factors linked to worse outcomes, such as higher tumor stage and shorter time to recurrence, particularly after prostatectomy.
  • The findings emphasize the need for effective risk stratification in managing BCR, suggesting different prognostic indicators based on the type of initial treatment received.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • A clinical trial called RADICALS-HD studied the effects of adding short-course androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) to postoperative radiotherapy in patients with localized prostate cancer after surgery.
  • It involved 1480 patients, examining how ADT impacts metastasis-free survival compared to radiotherapy alone, and measured outcomes like distant metastasis and overall survival.
  • The trial aimed to see if combining ADT with radiotherapy could improve the 10-year metastasis-free survival rate, potentially increasing it from 80% to 86%.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The purpose of this European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO) project, endorsed by the European Association of Urology, is to explore expert opinion on the management of patients with oligometastatic and oligoprogressive renal cell carcinoma by means of stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) on extracranial metastases, with the aim of developing consensus recommendations for patient selection, treatment doses, and concurrent systemic therapy. A questionnaire on SABR in oligometastatic renal cell carcinoma was prepared by a core group and reviewed by a panel of ten prominent experts in the field. The Delphi consensus methodology was applied, sending three rounds of questionnaires to clinicians identified as key opinion leaders in the field.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Importance: In 2018, the first online adaptive magnetic resonance (MR)-guided radiotherapy (MRgRT) system using a 1.5-T MR-equipped linear accelerator (1.5-T MR-Linac) was clinically introduced.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: The urethra is a critical structure in prostate radiotherapy planning; however, it is impossible to visualise on CT. We developed a surrogate urethra model (SUM) for CT-only planning workflow and tested its geometric and dosimetric performance against the MRI-delineated urethra (MDU).

Methods: The SUM was compared against 34 different MDUs (within the treatment PTV) in patients treated with 36.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background And Purpose: MRI-guided radiotherapy (MRIgRT) offers multiple potential advantages over CT-guidance. This study examines the potential clinical benefits of MRIgRT for men with localised prostate cancer, in the setting of moderately hypofractionated radiotherapy. We evaluate two-year toxicity outcomes, early biochemical response and patient-reported outcomes (PRO), using data obtained from a multicentre international registry study, for the first group of patients with prostate cancer who underwent treatment on a 1.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: The FLAME trial provides strong evidence that MR-guided external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) focal boost for localized prostate cancer increases biochemical disease-free survival (bDFS) without increasing toxicity. Yet, there are many barriers to implementation of focal boost. Our objectives are to systemically review clinical outcomes for MR-guided EBRT focal boost and to consider approaches to increase implementation of this technique.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Combinatorial therapies consisting of radiation therapy (RT) with systemic therapies, particularly chemotherapy and targeted therapies, have moved the needle to augment disease control across nearly all disease sites for locally advanced disease. Evaluating these important combinations to incorporate more potent therapies with RT will aid our understanding of toxicity and efficacy for patients. This article discusses multiple disease sites and includes a compilation of contributions from expert Red Journal editors from each disease site.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Surgery is the standard of care for patients with primary renal cell carcinoma. Stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) is a novel alternative for patients who are medically inoperable, technically high risk, or who decline surgery. Evidence for using SBRT in the primary renal cell carcinoma setting is growing, including several rigorously conducted prospective clinical trials.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The advent of MRI guided radiotherapy (MRIgRT) offers enormous promise in the treatment of prostate cancer. The MR-linac offers men the opportunity to receive daily MR imaging to guide and influence their radiotherapy treatment. This review focuses on the advantages that MRIgRT potentially offers as well as any potential disadvantages to MRIgRT that may have been recognized thus far.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: In a recent phase III randomized control trial, delivering a focal radiotherapy (RT) boost to tumors visible on MRI was shown to improve disease-free survival and regional/distant metastasis-free survival for patients with prostate cancer-without increasing toxicity. The aim of this study was to assess how widely this technique is being applied in current practice, as well as physicians' perceived barriers toward its implementation.

Methods: We invited radiation oncologists to complete an online questionnaire assessing their use of intraprostatic focal boost in December 2022 and February 2023.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: External beam radiation therapy to the prostate is typically delivered after verification of prostatic position with image guidance. Prostate motion can occur during the delivery of each radiation treatment between the time of localization imaging and completion of treatment. The objective of this work is to review the literature on intrafraction motion (IFM) of the prostate during radiation therapy and offer clinical recommendations on management.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: Ultrahypofractionated radiation therapy (UHRT) is an effective treatment for localized prostate cancer with an acceptable toxicity profile; boosting the visible intraprostatic tumor has been shown to improve biochemical disease-free survival with no significant effect on genitourinary (GU) and gastrointestinal (GI) toxicity.

Methods And Materials: HERMES is a single-center noncomparative randomized phase 2 trial in men with intermediate or lower high risk prostate cancer. Patients were allocated (1:1) to 36.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Traditionally, external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) for localized prostate cancer (PCa) involved lengthy courses with low daily doses. However, advancements in radiation delivery and a better understanding of prostate radiobiology have enabled the development of shorter courses of EBRT. Ultrahypofractionated radiotherapy, administering doses greater than 5 Gy per fraction, is now considered a standard of care regimen for localized PCa, particularly for intermediate-risk disease.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates whether biochemical recurrence (BCR) can predict overall survival (OS) in localized prostate cancer by analyzing patient data from 11 clinical trials focused on various treatment methods.* -
  • Results showed that while treatment methods like short-term androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) improved cancer outcomes, there was no significant treatment impact on OS when adjusting for BCR after 48 months.* -
  • The correlation between BCR-free survival and OS was moderate, with Kendall's tau values demonstrating a range between 0.59 and 0.69, indicating a potential relationship but underscoring the complexity of predicting overall survival based on BCR.*
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study investigated the variability in contouring the prostate bed clinical target volume (CTV) on MRI among radiation oncologists, aiming to establish baseline interobserver variability (IOV) and create international consensus guidelines.
  • Sixteen oncologists analyzed three MRI scans, revealing significant differences in contouring before guidelines were developed, with notable variability in overlap, distance, and volume metrics.
  • After creating consensus guidelines, IOV improved, showing a decrease in maximum volume ratio and volume coefficient of variation, alongside an increase in the Dice similarity coefficient.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This systematic review and meta-analysis reports on outcomes and hepatic toxicity rates after stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for liver-confined hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and presents consensus guidelines regarding appropriate patient management. Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systemic Review and Meta-Analyses guidelines, a systematic review was performed from articles reporting outcomes at ≥5 years published before October 2022 from the Embase, MEDLINE, Cochrane, and Scopus databases with the following search terms: ("stereotactic body radiotherapy" OR "SBRT" OR "SABR" OR "stereotactic ablative radiotherapy") AND ("hepatocellular carcinoma" OR "HCC"). An aggregated data meta-analysis was conducted to assess overall survival (OS) and local control (LC) using weighted random effects models.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: Rectal dose delivered during prostate radiation therapy is associated with gastrointestinal toxicity. Treatment plans are commonly optimized using rectal dose-volume constraints, often whole-rectum relative-volumes (%). We investigated whether improved rectal contouring, use of absolute-volumes (cc), or rectal truncation might improve toxicity prediction.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) is effective for treating early-stage lung cancer and lung metastases, but ultra-central tumors raise unique safety issues, prompting a systematic review and meta-analysis by the International Stereotactic Radiosurgery Society (ISRS).
  • The review analyzed 27 studies involving 1,183 ultra-central lung tumors treated with SBRT, revealing high local control rates of 92% at 1 year and 89% at 2 years, while also noting a 6% incidence of significant toxicities and a 4% rate of treatment-related deaths.
  • Key risk factors for serious side effects included anticoagulation, interstitial lung disease, endobronchial tumors, and
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: In a recent phase III randomized control trial (FLAME), delivering a focal radiotherapy (RT) boost to tumors visible on MRI was shown to improve outcomes for prostate cancer patients without increasing toxicity. The aim of this study was to assess how widely this technique is being applied in current practice as well as physicians' perceived barriers toward its implementation.

Methods: An online survey assessing the use of intraprostatic focal boost was conducted in December 2022 and February 2023.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: Evidence of a volume-outcome association in cancer surgery has shaped the centralization of cancer services; however, it is unknown whether a similar association exists for radiation therapy. The objective of this study was to determine the association between radiation therapy treatment volume and patient outcomes.

Methods And Materials: This systematic review and meta-analysis included studies that compared outcomes of patients who underwent definitive radiation therapy at high-volume radiation therapy facilities (HVRFs) versus low-volume facilities (LVRFs).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF