Analysis of After-Hours Patient Telephone Calls in Two Academic Radiation Oncology Departments: An Opportunity for Improvement in Patient Safety and Quality of Care.

Purpose: Patient care within radiation oncology extends beyond the clinic or treatment hours. The on-call radiation oncologist is often not a patient's primary radiation oncologist, introducing the possibility of communication breakdowns and medical errors. This study analyzed after-hours telephone calls to identify opportunities for improved patient safety and quality of care.

Results of the 2013-2015 Association of Residents in Radiation Oncology Survey of Chief Residents in the United States.

Purpose: The purpose of this project was to survey radiation oncology chief residents to define their residency experience and readiness for independent practice.

Methods And Materials: During the academic years 2013 to 2014 and 2014 to 2015, the Association of Residents in Radiation Oncology (ARRO) conducted an electronic survey of post-graduate year-5 radiation oncology residents in the United States during the final 3 months of training. Descriptive statistics are reported.

Treatment of stage II-III rectal cancer patients.

The role and sequencing of radiotherapy in the management of T3-4 or node-positive rectal cancer has evolved over the last few decades. Given the significant local failure rate following surgery alone, both preoperative and postoperative chemotherapy and radiotherapy have been studied to decrease local and systemic failure and improve survival in these patients. This review discusses current indications and controversies for treatment of stage II-III rectal cancer patients.

Stage migration in planning PET/CT scans in patients due to receive radiotherapy for non-small-cell lung cancer.

Introduction: This study examined rates of tumor progression in treatment-naive patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) as determined by repeat treatment-planning fluorine-18 ((18)F) fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography ((18)F-FDG PET/CT).

Methods And Materials: This study assessed patients who underwent PET/CT simulation for NSCLC stage II/III, radiation-naive, nonmetastatic NSCLC. It compared planning PET/CT with previous PET/CT images.

Defining the optimal approach to the patient with postradiation prostate-specific antigen recurrence using outcome data from a prospective randomized trial.

Background: Optimal management remains unknown following prostate-specific antigen (PSA) failure when considering comorbidity and PSA kinetics at recurrence. In order to define randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that can address this issue, this study examined factors associated with the risk of death following PSA failure.

Methods: Of 206 men randomized to RT with or without 6 months of androgen suppression therapy (AST), 108 sustained PSA failure and began AST when PSA approached 10 ng/mL and formed the study cohort.