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Copyright of Strahlentherapie und Onkologie is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The majority of breast cancer patients will require radiation therapy at some time during the course of their disease. An estimated 30-50% of all radiation treatments are of palliative nature, either to alleviate symptoms or prophylactic to prevent deterioration of quality of life due to locally progressive disease. Radiotherapy is a locally effective tool, and typically causes no systemic and mostly mild acute side effects. The following article provides an overview of options and decision-making in palliative radiotherapy for symptom control. Copyright © 2011 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of two modalities of dose-escalated radiotherapy on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) were compared. Forty-one consecutive patients were treated with a 3-D conformal (3-DC) boost to 74 Gy, and 43 with high-dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy boost (2×9 Gy), following 3-D conformal treatment to 46 Gy. Median age was 70 years in both groups, median initial PSA was 7.9 µg/l in 3-DC boost patients and 8.1 µg/l in HDR boost patients. Stage was ≤T2 in 66% and 67% and Gleason score was ≥7 in 52% and 47%, respectively. HRQOL was assessed cross-sectionally using EORTC QLQ-C30 and organ-specific PR25 modules 3 – 32 (median 19) and 4 – 25 (median 14) months after treatment, respectively. Questionnaires were completed by 93% and 97% of patients, respectively. Diarrhea and insomnia scores were significantly increased in both groups. In the PR25 module, scores of 3-DC boost and HDR boost patients for urinary, bowel and treatment-related symptoms were similar. Among responders, 34% of 3-DC boost patients and 86% of HDR boost patients had severe erectile problems. Dose escalation in prostate cancer by either 3-DC boost to 74 Gy or HDR brachytherapy boost appears to result in similar HRQOL profiles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes case studies of four patients with treatment-refractory mycosis fungoides (MF) who were treated with denileukin diftitox (DD) combined with simplified total skin electron beam radiation (TSEB). The patients had disease durations of two-nine years and multiple comorbidities. The cases demonstrate that a combination of DD and TSEB is an effective treatment option for refractory, intermediate stage MF, with limited toxicity.