Phase II trial of preoperative chemoradiation with a hyperfractionated radiation boost in locally advanced rectal cancer.

Purpose: The purpose of this phase II study was to prospectively determine the efficacy of preoperative chemoradiation with a hyperfractionated (Hfx) RT boost to 61.8 Gy in locally advanced rectal cancer.

Methods: Eligibility stipulated that the primary lesion had to be either T4; or T3 and >4 cm or 40% of the bowel circumference.

Importance of physical examination in the absence of a mammographic abnormality for the detection of early-stage breast cancer.

Purpose: A recent trial called into question the efficacy of breast self-examination. We studied the characteristics and outcome of women in whom physical examination (PE) was their sole method of breast cancer detection.

Patients And Methods: From 1970 to 1998, 1752 women with stage I/II breast cancer underwent breast-conserving surgery and radiation.

Posttreatment prostate-specific antigen nadir highly predictive of distant failure and death from prostate cancer.

Purpose: To link posttreatment biochemical profiles to distant failure and cause-specific survival by assessing the relationship between posttreatment prostate-specific antigen (PSA) nadir and PSA doubling time (PSADT) with these outcome measures.

Methods And Materials: A total of 615 men were treated at the Fox Chase Cancer Center between April 1989 and December 1995 with three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy alone (median dose 73 Gy). The median follow-up was 64 months (range 2-135).