The current state and future perspectives of radiotherapy for cervical cancer.

Radiotherapy is an effective treatment method for cervical cancer and is typically administered as external beam radiotherapy followed by intracavitary brachytherapy. In Japan, center shielding is used in external beam radiotherapy to shorten treatment time and reduce the doses delivered to the rectum or bladder. However, it has several challenges, such as uncertainties in calculating the cumulative dose.

Stereotactic radiotherapy for ventricular tachycardia: A study protocol.

Background: Currently, the standard curative treatment for ventricular tachycardia (VT) and ventricular fibrillation (VF) is radiofrequency catheter ablation. However, when the VT circuit is deep in the myocardium, the catheter may not be delivered, and a new, minimally invasive treatment using different energies is desired.

Methods: This is a protocol paper for a feasibility study designed to provide stereotactic radiotherapy for refractory VT not cured by catheter ablation after at least one catheter ablation.

Transposable elements potentiate radiotherapy-induced cellular immune reactions via RIG-I-mediated virus-sensing pathways.

Radiotherapy (RT) plus immunotherapy is a promising modality; however, the therapeutic effects are insufficient, and the molecular mechanism requires clarification to further develop combination therapies. Here, we found that the RNA virus sensor pathway dominantly regulates the cellular immune response in NSCLC and ESCC cell lines. Notably, transposable elements (TEs), especially long terminal repeats (LTRs), functioned as key ligands for the RNA virus sensor RIG-I, and the mTOR-LTR-RIG-I axis induced the cellular immune response and dendritic cell and macrophage infiltration after irradiation.

Optimized radiotherapy treatment strategy for early glottic carcinoma.

The local control rates of T1 bulky and T2 glottic carcinoma treated via radiation therapy alone are unsatisfactory; thus, we aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of our treatment protocol for early glottic carcinoma. Patients with early glottic squamous cell carcinoma treated via radiation therapy from January 2007 to November 2019 were reviewed. Patients were treated with: 63-67.

The effectiveness of moisturizer on acute radiation-induced dermatitis in breast cancer patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Purpose: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate the effectiveness of moisturizers on acute radiation dermatitis (ARD) in breast cancer patients receiving radiotherapy (RT).

Methods: PubMed, the Cochrane Library, CINAHL, and Ichushi-Web were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) from April 2015 to March 2020. Assessments included type of intervention, cohort, outcomes, and quality of evidence.

Comprehensive screening for drugs that modify radiation-induced immune responses.

Background: Combination therapy based on radiotherapy and immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) was recently reported as effective for various cancers. The radiation-induced immune response (RIIR) is an essential feature in ICI-combined radiotherapy; however, the effects of drugs used concomitantly with RIIR remain unclear. We screened for drugs that can modify RIIR to understand the mutual relationship between radiotherapy and combined drugs in ICI-combined radiotherapy.

Impacts of the STING-IFNAR1-STAT1-IRF1 pathway on the cellular immune reaction induced by fractionated irradiation.

Radiotherapy (RT) combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors has recently produced outstanding results and is expected to be adaptable for various cancers. However, the precise molecular mechanism by which immune reactions are induced by fractionated RT is still controversial. We aimed to investigate the mechanism of the immune response regarding multifractionated, long-term radiation, which is most often combined with immunotherapy.

Liquid Biopsy Cell-free DNA Biomarkers in Patients With Oligometastatic Colorectal Cancer Treated by Ablative Radiotherapy.

Background/aim: To investigate the usefulness of cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in patients with oligometastasis.

Patients And Methods: This study included oligometastatic colorectal cancer (CRC) patients who underwent ablative irradiation using stereotactic body radiotherapy or proton beam therapy for metastatic lesions at a single institution. cfDNA was purified from the plasma of pretreated patients and gene mutations were analyzed by next-generation sequencing.

Dose-Volume and Radiobiological Model-Based Comparative Evaluation of the Gastrointestinal Toxicity Risk of Photon and Proton Irradiation Plans in Localized Pancreatic Cancer Without Distant Metastasis.

Radiobiological model-based studies of photon-modulated radiotherapy for pancreatic cancer have reported reduced gastrointestinal (GI) toxicity, although the risk is still high. The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential of 3D-passive scattering proton beam therapy (3D-PSPBT) in limiting GI organ at risk (OAR) toxicity in localized pancreatic cancer based on dosimetric data and the normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) model. The data of 24 pancreatic cancer patients were retrospectively analyzed, and these patients were planned with intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT), volume-modulated arc therapy (VMAT), and 3D-PSPBT.

Radiobiological model-based approach to determine the potential of dose-escalated robust intensity-modulated proton radiotherapy in reducing gastrointestinal toxicity in the treatment of locally advanced unresectable pancreatic cancer of the head.

Background: The purpose of this study was to determine the potential of escalated dose radiation (EDR) robust intensity-modulated proton radiotherapy (ro-IMPT) in reducing GI toxicity risk in locally advanced unresectable pancreatic cancer (LAUPC) of the head in term of normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) predictive model.

Methods: For 9 patients, intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) was compared with ro-IMPT. For all plans, the prescription dose was 59.

Prospective evaluation of the setup errors and its impact on safety margin for cervical cancer pelvic conformal radiotherapy.

Aim: The primary objective was to assess set-up errors (SE) and secondary objective was to determine optimal safety margin (SM).

Background: To evaluate the SE and its impact on the SM utilizing electronic portal imaging (EPI) for pelvic conformal radiotherapy.

Material And Methods: 20 cervical cancer patients were enrolled in this prospective study.

Efficacy and safety of accelerated fractionated radiotherapy without elective nodal irradiation for T3N0 glottic cancer without vocal cord fixation.

Background: The purpose of this study was to evaluate accelerated fractionated radiotherapy (AFRT) without elective nodal irradiation (ENI) for T3N0 glottic cancer (GC) without vocal cord fixation, especially in comparison with chemoradiotherapy (CRT) and hyperfractionated radiotherapy (HFRT) both of which included ENI.

Methods: The medical charts of patients with T3N0GC without cord fixation received definitive radiotherapy between June 2005 and March 2018 were reviewed.

Results: A total of 74 patients were analyzed.

Prospective evaluation of XRCC-1 Arg194Trp polymorphism as bio-predictor for clinical outcome in locally advanced laryngeal cancer undergoing cisplatin-based chemoradiation.

Background: To determine X-ray repair cross-complementing 1 gene (XRCC-1) Arg194Trp polymorphism as bio-predictor for clinical outcome in advanced laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma undergoing cisplatin-based chemoradiation (CRT).

Methods: A total of 150 patients were enrolled in this prospective study. XRCC-1 Arg194Trp genotyping categorized patients as wild (C/C) and polymorphic (C/T or T/T).

Could excision repair cross-complementing group-1 mRNA expression from peripheral blood lymphocytes predict locoregional failure with cisplatin chemoradiation for locally advanced laryngeal cancer?

Aim: The association of excision repair cross-complementing 1 mRNA (ERCC-1 mRNA) expression with the outcome has been reported with immunohistochemistry (IHC) using tumor tissue in head and neck cancer. We evaluated ERCC-1 mRNA expression by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) from peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) as bio-predictor of locoregional failure (LRF) to chemoradiation (CRT) for locally advanced laryngeal squamous cell cancer (LALSCC).

Methods: A total of 107 male patients with LALSCC were enrolled in this prospective study.

Impact of Proton Beam Irradiation of an Anatomic Subsegment of the Liver for Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Purpose: The objective of this research was to elucidate the impact on the prognosis, including the survival prognosis, resulting from proton beam irradiation of an anatomic subsegment of the liver (ASPT) for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Methods And Materials: A total of 110 patients who received a diagnosis of HCC were analyzed in this retrospective study. Definitive proton beam therapy was delivered at a dose of 76 Gy (relative biological effectiveness) in 20 fractions between January 2008 and December 2015.

Hypofractionated proton beam therapy for centrally located lung cancer.

Introduction: To clarify the efficacy and safety of hypofractionated proton beam therapy (PBT) for centrally located lung cancer.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 39 patients who received hypofractionated [≧3 Gy (relative biological effectiveness: RBE)/fraction] PBT for centrally located cT1-2N0M0 (8th edition) lung cancer between 1999 and 2015. A tumour within 2 cm of the proximal bronchial tree was defined as a centrally located tumour.

Impact of EGFR Mutation and ALK Translocation on Recurrence Pattern After Definitive Chemoradiotherapy for Inoperable Stage III Non-squamous Non-small-cell Lung Cancer.

Introduction: This study was aimed at clarifying the failure pattern after definitive chemoradiotherapy in patients with stage III non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) harboring epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations and/or anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) translocation.

Methods And Materials: This retrospective study was a single-institution study conducted on patients with unresectable stage III non-squamous NSCLC treated by definitive chemoradiotherapy between January 2006 and March 2016. Only patients with information of EGFR mutations and/or ALK translocation were included.