Felipe Couñago, Medical Director of GenesisCare Spain and Radiation Oncologist, shared on LinkedIn:
“Five-fraction breast radiotherapy with a simultaneous integrated boost. What do we see at five years?
The final version of our prospective multicentre study on late side effects is out today in the Red Journal, Open Access.
We included 242 patients with early-stage breast cancer who received whole-breast radiotherapy at 26 Gy in five fractions. Of these, 157 received a simultaneous integrated boost to 29 Gy to the tumour bed, completing the full course in one week.
Treatment was generally well tolerated over five years. In the boost group, the five-year cumulative incidence of any-grade breast pain was 14.6%, and that of any-grade fibrosis was 8.9%. Persistent breast pain was low grade and was reported more often in the boost group in an exploratory comparison between non-randomised groups.
I’m especially pleased to share this paper because it forms part of the doctoral thesis of our first author, Maia Dzhugashvili. Congratulations, Maia, and thank you to all the teams who made this study possible and to the patients who took part.”
Read the full article.
Key Takeaways
- Study design: The study included 242 patients with early-stage breast cancer treated with whole-breast radiotherapy over five fractions (26 Gy), with some also receiving a simultaneous integrated boost (29 Gy).
- Long-term safety: After a median follow-up of 64.7 months, late toxicities were generally uncommon and mostly mild.
- Side effects: Breast pain was more common among patients who received a boost (14.6% vs 4.7%), while fibrosis was reported in 8.9%.
- Recurrence: Only 2 of the 157 patients who received a boost experienced recurrence during follow-up (1.3%).
- Clinical relevance: Combining whole-breast radiotherapy and the tumour-bed boost into five sessions could shorten treatment time and reduce the burden of repeated hospital visits.
Title: Five-Year Late Toxicity After Ultra-Hypofractionated Whole-Breast Radiation Therapy With Simultaneous Integrated Boost: A Prospective Multicenter Cohort Study
Authors: Maia Dzhugashvili, Escarlata Lopez, Jaume Fernández-Ibiza, Ana Serradilla, Antonio Seral, Sigfredo Elias Romero Zoghbi, Graciela García, Kirill Matskov Malinochka, Lisellot Torres, Daniela Gonsalves, José Begara, Ana Belén Bezares, Álvaro Flores, María Mateos, David Esteban, Daniel Rivas, Jon Andreescu, Castalia Fernandez, Abrahams Ocanto, Loubna Aakki, Francisco Góngora, Alberto Gómez, Eduardo Melian, Juan José De la Cruz Troca, Philip Poortmans, Juan A. Barcia, Felipe Couñago.
About Felipe Couñago
Felipe Couñago is a Spanish radiation oncologist and Medical Director at GenesisCare Spain. His clinical and research work focuses on lung and prostate cancer, stereotactic radiotherapy and advanced radiation techniques.
He has authored more than 90 scientific publications and participated in numerous clinical trials. He is also involved in oncology research, medical education and several international professional societies, including ESTRO and IASLC.
His work aims to advance radiation therapy and improve treatment outcomes for cancer patients.
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