Gustatory impairment in patients undergoing head and neck irradiation.

Objectives: To determine whether radiation alters taste function and structure.

Research Design: Prospective, longitudinal study.

Methodology: Testing prior to starting radiation, and 2 weeks, 2 months, and 6 months after completing radiation.

The influence of race on the attitudes of radiation oncology patients towards clinical trial enrollment.

Objectives: Enrollment of adult cancer patients in clinical trials remains low, particularly in the minority population. Understanding patient attitudes towards clinical trials during the recruitment process may enhance accrual. Unfortunately, data describing patient attitudes towards clinical trials are limited, particularly in the radiation oncology clinic setting.

Pilot study of accelerated radiotherapy with concurrent chemotherapy for stage III non-small cell lung cancer.

The purpose of this pilot study was to determine the safety and feasibility of accelerated fractionation (via concomitant boost) radiotherapy (XRT) with concurrent carboplatin/paclitaxel chemotherapy for locally advanced stage III non-small cell lung carcinoma. Radiotherapy consisted of 3-dimensional conformal techniques to 60 Gy continuous course, over 4 weeks, via 3-dimensional conformal techniques. Once-daily treatments were used; the large field (including gross tumor and selected regional nodes) was given a daily dose of 2.

Final report of a pilot trial of accelerated radiotherapy plus concurrent 96-hour infusional paclitaxel for locally advanced head and neck cancer.

Recent data show that accelerated radiotherapy (XRT) improves local-regional control (LRC) over standard-fractionation XRT. Concurrent chemoradiotherapy improves LRC and survival over XRT alone. This study assesses the feasibility, toxicity, and preliminary efficacy of concurrent 96-hour paclitaxel infusion with accelerated XRT.

A multi-institutional study of Internet utilization by radiation oncology patients.

Purpose: Studies describing the use of the Internet by radiation oncology patients are lacking. This multi-institutional study of cancer patients presenting to academic (AC), community (CO), and veterans (VA) radiation oncology centers was designed to analyze the use of the Internet, demographic factors related to utilization, and barriers to access to the Internet.

Methods And Materials: A questionnaire evaluating the use of the Internet was administered to 921 consecutive patients presenting to radiation oncology centers at AC, CO, and VA medical centers.

Rates of unconventional medical therapy use in patients with prostate cancer: standard history versus directed questions.

Objectives: The use of unconventional medical therapies (UMTs) in the general population has increased dramatically in the past decade. Studies have estimated that 9% to 64% of patients with cancer use UMTs, and many do not disclose this information to their physicians. This study was designed to evaluate the rates of UMT use by patients with prostate cancer revealed by standard versus directed questioning and to identify demographic markers that may predict use.