Irradiation of FDG-PET-Defined Active Bone Marrow Subregions and Acute Hematologic Toxicity in Anal Cancer Patients Undergoing Chemoradiation.

Purpose: Irradiation of pelvic bone marrow (BM) has been correlated with hematologic toxicity (HT) in patients undergoing chemoradiation for anal cancer. We hypothesized that irradiation of hematologically active bone marrow (ABM) subregions defined by fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) is a principal cause of radiation-associated HT.

Methods And Materials: The cohort included 45 patients with nonmetastatic anal cancer who underwent FDG-PET imaging prior to definitive chemoradiation with mitomycin-C and 5-fluorouracil. Total bone marrow (TBM) was defined as the external contour of the pelvic bones from the top of lumbar 5 (L5) to the bottom of the ischial tuberosity. Standardized uptake values (SUV) for all voxels within the TBM were quantified and normalized by comparison to normal liver SUV. Subvolumes of the TBM that exhibited the highest and lowest 50% of the SUVs were designated ABM50 and IBM50, respectively. The primary endpoint was the absolute neutrophil count (ANC) nadir during or within 2 weeks of completion of treatment. Multivariate linear modeling was used to analyze the correlation between the equivalent uniform doses (EUD) with an a value of 0.5, 1 (equivalent to mean dose), 3, 7, and 12 to the BM structures and the ANC.

Results: Mean ± SD ANC nadir was 0.77 × 10(9)/L (±0.66 × 10(9)/L). Grades 3 and 4 ANC toxicity occurred in 26.7% and 44.4% of patients, respectively. The EUD a parameter of 0.5 was optimal for all BM models indicating high radiation sensitivity. EUD of TBM and ABM50 and IBM50 were all significantly associated with ANC nadir. However, model performance for ABM50 was not superior to that of the TBM and IBM50 models.

Conclusions: Irradiation of pelvic BM was associated with HT. However, FDG-PET-defined ABM models failed to improve model performance compared to the TBM model.