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A retrospective review of outcomes in patients with node-negative stage IB cervical cancer treated with adjuvant standard pelvic field radiation versus small field pelvic field radiation

Objective: A retrospective review was conducted to ascertain whether there are differences in outcome or complications between node-negative patients with stage IB cervical cancer who were treated with adjuvant standard field as opposed to small pelvic field radiotherapy (RT). Study design: A retros...

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Main Author: Ralefala, Tlotlo
Other Authors: Van Wijk, Leon
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: Division of Radiation Oncology 2018
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access_status_str Open Access
author Ralefala, Tlotlo
author2 Van Wijk, Leon
author_browse Ralefala, Tlotlo
Van Wijk, Leon
author_facet Van Wijk, Leon
Ralefala, Tlotlo
author_sort Ralefala, Tlotlo
collection Thesis
description Objective: A retrospective review was conducted to ascertain whether there are differences in outcome or complications between node-negative patients with stage IB cervical cancer who were treated with adjuvant standard field as opposed to small pelvic field radiotherapy (RT). Study design: A retrospective observational study of patients with stage IB cervical cancer treated with radical surgery between 1984 and 2010 at Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town, South Africa. Two different pelvic radiation field sizes were used for adjuvant post-operative RT in node-negative patients during this period: standard whole pelvic fields (WPF), or with reduced-size, "small pelvic field" (SPF) RT since 1991. These two methods reflect changes in protocol over the period of this review. Cisplatin given concurrently with radiation has been used since 1999. Cancer control and grade 3 and 4 toxicities were compared between the two groups. The aim of this study was primarily to examine whether adjuvant SPF RT is a safe approach. A literature review was conducted on the subject of post-operative adjuvant RT, especially in node-negative patients; one aim was to discover how widely the SPF approach is used throughout the world. There was no indication in the literature that this approach has been used elsewhere in South Africa. Results: The SPF technique was first advocated by Prof Neville Hacker in Australia in 1991. The first publication by his group on SPF was in 1999, followed by several subsequent retrospective reports from Asian centers. In the current audit study, 31 patients were found in the WPF group, and 56 in the SPF group. The overall 5-year survival rate was 85%. No significant differences in survival rates were found between the WPF and SPF groups (log rank p=0.67) It was found that relapse patterns did not differ between the two groups and the same applied to the crude grade 3-4 treatment morbidity rates, although two patients in the WPF group (6%) died from their complications. Conclusions: The expected benefit of the SPF approach, which targets the central pelvic tumour bed, is a reduction in small bowel morbidity and lymphoedema. It is not possible to conclude from this study whether the SPF technique is unsafe by increasing out-of-field pelvic relapses, or whether it truly reduces complications. The literature review reveals that most studies of SPF involved relatively few patients and events were infrequent, whether recurrences or morbidity. A randomized controlled trial could theoretically settle this issue but it seems unlikely ever to be performed as a large sample size would be required. Intermittent single institution, or multi-institutional pooled comparisons, with historical WPF controls seem to be the best option.
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institution University of Cape Town (South Africa)
language eng
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:32:33.381Z
license_str Not specified — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
publishDate 2018
publishDateRange 2018
publishDateSort 2018
publisher Division of Radiation Oncology
publisherStr Division of Radiation Oncology
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spelling oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/27365 A retrospective review of outcomes in patients with node-negative stage IB cervical cancer treated with adjuvant standard pelvic field radiation versus small field pelvic field radiation Ralefala, Tlotlo Van Wijk, Leon Radiation Oncology Objective: A retrospective review was conducted to ascertain whether there are differences in outcome or complications between node-negative patients with stage IB cervical cancer who were treated with adjuvant standard field as opposed to small pelvic field radiotherapy (RT). Study design: A retrospective observational study of patients with stage IB cervical cancer treated with radical surgery between 1984 and 2010 at Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town, South Africa. Two different pelvic radiation field sizes were used for adjuvant post-operative RT in node-negative patients during this period: standard whole pelvic fields (WPF), or with reduced-size, "small pelvic field" (SPF) RT since 1991. These two methods reflect changes in protocol over the period of this review. Cisplatin given concurrently with radiation has been used since 1999. Cancer control and grade 3 and 4 toxicities were compared between the two groups. The aim of this study was primarily to examine whether adjuvant SPF RT is a safe approach. A literature review was conducted on the subject of post-operative adjuvant RT, especially in node-negative patients; one aim was to discover how widely the SPF approach is used throughout the world. There was no indication in the literature that this approach has been used elsewhere in South Africa. Results: The SPF technique was first advocated by Prof Neville Hacker in Australia in 1991. The first publication by his group on SPF was in 1999, followed by several subsequent retrospective reports from Asian centers. In the current audit study, 31 patients were found in the WPF group, and 56 in the SPF group. The overall 5-year survival rate was 85%. No significant differences in survival rates were found between the WPF and SPF groups (log rank p=0.67) It was found that relapse patterns did not differ between the two groups and the same applied to the crude grade 3-4 treatment morbidity rates, although two patients in the WPF group (6%) died from their complications. Conclusions: The expected benefit of the SPF approach, which targets the central pelvic tumour bed, is a reduction in small bowel morbidity and lymphoedema. It is not possible to conclude from this study whether the SPF technique is unsafe by increasing out-of-field pelvic relapses, or whether it truly reduces complications. The literature review reveals that most studies of SPF involved relatively few patients and events were infrequent, whether recurrences or morbidity. A randomized controlled trial could theoretically settle this issue but it seems unlikely ever to be performed as a large sample size would be required. Intermittent single institution, or multi-institutional pooled comparisons, with historical WPF controls seem to be the best option. 2018-02-07T09:05:57Z 2018-02-07T09:05:57Z 2017 Master Thesis Masters MMed http://hdl.handle.net/11427/27365 eng application/pdf Division of Radiation Oncology Faculty of Health Sciences University of Cape Town
spellingShingle Radiation Oncology
Ralefala, Tlotlo
A retrospective review of outcomes in patients with node-negative stage IB cervical cancer treated with adjuvant standard pelvic field radiation versus small field pelvic field radiation
thesis_degree_str Master's
title A retrospective review of outcomes in patients with node-negative stage IB cervical cancer treated with adjuvant standard pelvic field radiation versus small field pelvic field radiation
title_full A retrospective review of outcomes in patients with node-negative stage IB cervical cancer treated with adjuvant standard pelvic field radiation versus small field pelvic field radiation
title_fullStr A retrospective review of outcomes in patients with node-negative stage IB cervical cancer treated with adjuvant standard pelvic field radiation versus small field pelvic field radiation
title_full_unstemmed A retrospective review of outcomes in patients with node-negative stage IB cervical cancer treated with adjuvant standard pelvic field radiation versus small field pelvic field radiation
title_short A retrospective review of outcomes in patients with node-negative stage IB cervical cancer treated with adjuvant standard pelvic field radiation versus small field pelvic field radiation
title_sort retrospective review of outcomes in patients with node negative stage ib cervical cancer treated with adjuvant standard pelvic field radiation versus small field pelvic field radiation
topic Radiation Oncology
url http://hdl.handle.net/11427/27365
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AT ralefalatlotlo retrospectivereviewofoutcomesinpatientswithnodenegativestageibcervicalcancertreatedwithadjuvantstandardpelvicfieldradiationversussmallfieldpelvicfieldradiation