Exploring the cancer patients' experiences during external radiotherapy: A systematic review and thematic synthesis of qualitative and quantitative evidence.

Purpose: To investigate the subjective experience of adult cancer patients undergoing external radiotherapy and provide evidence for better practices in radiotherapy services.

Methods: A systematic review was performed according to the PRISMA Statement Guidelines. Qualitative and mixed studies were identified through five electronic databases (CINAHL, PsychINFO, Medline, Scopus and Web of Science), between March and April 2020, using defined criteria.

First day of radiotherapy for women with breast cancer: predictors of anxiety.

Purpose: Radiotherapy treatment may generate anxiety, especially on the first day of treatment. This study aimed to identify potential predictors of radiotherapy-related anxiety in women  with breast cancer before treatment initiation, in terms of treatment concerns and trait anxiety.

Methods: This transversal study included 94 patients from one Radiation Oncology Department, who had been diagnosed with primary breast cancer and who had been prescribed external radiotherapy for the first time.

Evaluation of administered dose using portal images in craniospinal irradiation of pediatric patients.

This study aimed to assess the administered dose based on portal imaging in craniospinal pediatric irradiation by evaluating cases in which portal images did or did not account for the total administered dose. We also intended to calculate the mean increase in total administered dose. Data were collected from General University Hospital Gregorio Marañón; we evaluated the total dose administered, total dose planned, number of portal images per treatment and corresponding monitor units of two different groups: one in which the dose from portal images is deducted from the total administered dose (D), and another in which it was not (N).

Evaluating deviations in prostatectomy patients treated with IMRT.

Aim: To evaluate the deviations in prostatectomy patients treated with IMRT in order to calculate appropriate margins to create the PTV.

Background: Defining inappropriate margins can lead to underdosing in target volumes and also overdosing in healthy tissues, increasing morbidity.

Material And Methods: 223 CBCT images used for alignment with the CT planning scan based on bony anatomy were analyzed in 12 patients treated with IMRT following prostatectomy.