Analysis of cardiac and pulmonary complication probabilities after radiation therapy for patients with early-stage breast cancer.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the radiobiological implications of clinical use of respiratory-gated techniques for postoperative radiation therapy of early-stage left-sided breast cancer after breast-conserving surgery.

Material And Methods: Radiation therapy treatment plans of 80 patients with early-stage breast cancer (stage I-II), receiving whole breast irradiation after breast-conserving therapy, were analyzed. The control group consisting of 47 patients received standard radiation therapy, and the respiratory-gated group consisting of 33 patients received deep inspiration-gated radiation therapy.