Radiotherapy for Thoracic Malignancies: New Advances and Challenges (Volume II)

A special issue of Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694). This special issue belongs to the section "Cancer Therapy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2024 | Viewed by 1058

Special Issue Editor

Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, 55 Lake Avenue North, Worcester, MA 01655, USA
Interests: radiotherapy; stereotactic body radiation therapy; non-small cell lung cancer; immunotherapy
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are excited to invite you to contribute to this Special Issue, which is the second edition of "Radiotherapy for Thoracic Malignancies: New Advances and Challenges" (https://www.mdpi.com/journal/cancers/special_issues/R_LC).

As the Guest Editor for this Special Issue of the journal Cancers, I would like to reach out to request your contribution as an expert in the field of thoracic radiation oncology.

Recent advances in thoracic oncology have significantly improved our understanding of lung cancer and other thoracic malignancies, offering critical insight into the selection of therapeutic approaches. The gains in the field have been multifaceted and complementary. Refinements in diagnostic imaging have improved our ability to detect cancers and accurately stage patients. Routine molecular characterization of lung cancers has led to the identification and validation of prognostic and predictive biomarkers. The widespread adoption of immunotherapy for advanced and metastatic lung cancer, as well as promising findings in small cohorts of earlier-stage disease, has offered an additional therapeutic approach with impressive clinical outcomes in a subset of patients. In this setting and concomitant with all these advances, there has been a broad adoption of advanced image guidance technologies and stereotactic body radiation therapy, which are central to the recent therapeutic gains by radiotherapy in lung cancer.

In this Special Issue, we will highlight key recent advances in radiotherapy for lung cancer and other thoracic malignancies. We will focus on current clinical evidence, summarize pertinent trials, and identify ongoing challenges. In line with the increasing appreciation of the heterogeneity of malignancies, we will discuss emerging concepts on personalized therapy for lung cancer.

Dr. Eric C. Ko
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • radiotherapy
  • stereotactic body radiation therapy
  • non-small cell lung cancer
  • immunotherapy
  • thoracic oncology

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

12 pages, 956 KiB  
Article
Effect of Radiotherapy on the Right Ventricular Function in Lung Cancer Patients
by Grzegorz Sławiński, Maja Hawryszko, Zofia Lasocka-Koriat, Anna Romanowska, Kamil Myszczyński, Anna Wrona, Ludmiła Daniłowicz-Szymanowicz and Ewa Lewicka
Cancers 2024, 16(11), 1979; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers16111979 - 23 May 2024
Viewed by 756
Abstract
Background: Anticancer treatment is associated with many side effects, including those involving the cardiovascular system. While many studies are available on the effects of radiotherapy (RT) on the left ventricle (LV), studies are lacking on the early effects of RT on the structure [...] Read more.
Background: Anticancer treatment is associated with many side effects, including those involving the cardiovascular system. While many studies are available on the effects of radiotherapy (RT) on the left ventricle (LV), studies are lacking on the early effects of RT on the structure and function of the right ventricle (RV). Our study aims to assess, using modern echocardiographic techniques, the effect of irradiation on RV systolic function in the mid-term follow-up of patients undergoing RT for lung cancer (LC). Methods: This single-center, prospective study included consecutive patients with LC who were referred for treatment with definite radiotherapy and chemotherapy (study group) or chemotherapy only (control group). Results: The study included 43 patients with a mean age of 64.9 ± 8.1 years. Cancer treatment-related RV toxicity (CTR-RVT) was found in 17 patients (40%). Early reductions in TAPSE values were observed among patients in the study group (20.3 mm vs. 22.1 mm, p = 0.021). Compared to baseline, there was a significant reduction in RV global longitudinal strain (RV GLS) in the study group immediately after the treatment (−21.1% vs. −18.4%, p = 0.02) and also at 3 months after RT (−21.1% vs. −19.1%, p = 0.021). A significant reduction in the RV FWLS value was also observed at 3 months after the end of the treatment (−23.8% vs. −21.8, p = 0.046). There were no significant changes in the three-dimensional right ventricular ejection fraction (3DRVEF) during the follow-up. We found a correlation (p = 0.003) between the mean dose of radiation to the RV and 3DRVEF when assessed immediately after RT. The mean dose of radiation to the heart correlated with RV free-wall longitudinal strain (RV FWLS) immediately after RT (p = 0.03). Conclusions: RV cardiotoxicity occurs in nearly half of patients treated for lung cancer. TAPSE is an important marker of deterioration of RV function under LC treatment. Compared to 3DRVEF, speckle tracking echocardiography is more useful in revealing deterioration of RV systolic function after radiotherapy. Full article
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