Lower overall dosage of radiotherapy in fewer larger doses as safe for breast cancer patients

The chronic side-effects of radiotherapy for early breast cancer, as reported by women themselves, are not any worse when treatment is given in a lower overall dose in fewer but larger treatments according to a trial part funded by Cancer Research UK and published today in the Lancet Oncology.

The study was part of the 4,451 patient START1 trials, which were co-ordinated by the Clinical Trials and Statistics Unit at The Institute of Cancer Research and funded by Cancer Research UK, the Medical Research Council and the Department of Health. These trials found that a lower total dose of radiotherapy, delivered in fewer, larger treatments is as effective at treating the disease as the international standard of a higher total dose delivered over a longer time.

The new part of the START trial published today used a questionnaire2 approach to assess the chronic side-effects of different radiotherapy doses for early breast cancer which until now have been uncertain.

source: Cancer Research UK