Radiation boost helps cancer survival

Los Angeles -- An extra radiation boost following breast cancer surgery and standard radiation helps prevent breast cancer return in young women, a Dutch study found.

Senior author Dr. Harry Bartelink, a radiation oncologist at The Netherlands Cancer Institute at Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Hospital in The Netherlands, said for patients with early stage breast cancer, the current standard treatment involves breast conserving surgery -- lumpectomy -- followed by radiation therapy to the breast over a 6- to 8-week period to kill any remaining cancer cells.

In this study, an additional boost of high-dose radiation was given after conventional radiation therapy to the lumpectomy site where the tumor was removed to potentially increase the chances of a cure, Bartelink said.

The study involved 5,318 women who underwent lumpectomies and whole breast radiation treatment as part of their breast conserving therapy for Stage I and Stage II breast cancer. The study subjects were evaluated 10 years after treatment and the largest benefits of the boost dose of radiation was in women under the age of 40, who have a higher risk to breast cancer recurrence to begin with, Bartelink said.

Bartelink presented the findings at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology’s 49th annual meeting in Los Angeles.

© 2007 United Press International.