ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To compare the results of pituitary adenoma treated with conventional external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) versus stereotactic radiosurgery and stereotactic radiotherapy (SRS/SRT). METHOD AND MATERIAL: Data of patients with pituitary adenoma treated at Radiotherapy and Oncology unit, Ramathibodi Hospital between 1990 from 2003 were retrospectively collected and analyzed. Twenty-two patients were treated with EBRT and 51 patients were treated with SRS/SRT. RESULTS: The 5-year overall survival and local control rates were not different between the EBRT and SRS/SRT group (91% vs 100%, p = 0.10; 95% vs 96%, p = 0.33). The 5-year freedom from newly initiated hormonal replacement was 50% in EBRT and 75% in SRS/SRT group (p = 0.38). CONCLUSION: At a similar outcome but with lower expense of resources, EBRT should be considered an acceptable radiation technique for patients with pituitary adenoma, especially in developing countries such as Thailand.
ABSTRACT
A retrospective study of the preoperative chemoradiotherapy in locally advanced rectal cancer performed at Ramathibodi Hospital. The median age of twelve patients was 52 years. The tumor locations (upper-, mid-, lower rectum) were 25%, 50% and 25%, respectively. Eleven patients had clinical stage 111 disease. All received concurrent 5-FU-based chemoradiotherapy followed by surgery (if resectable) and chemotherapy. The most common toxicity of preoperative treatment was gr. 1-2 diarrhea (58.3%). The response rate was 41.7%. Five patients (41.7%) underwent sphincter-sparing surgery. Four patients underwent AP resection. Twenty-five percent achieved pathological complete response. Pathological downstaging occurred in 33.3%. The remaining three patients had unresectable disease. With the median follow up of 13 months, five patients had progressive disease and one has expired. The local failure rate was 16.7%. The one-year recurrence-free survival was 75%. The authors conclude that preoperative chemoradiotherapy is an effective treatment with favorable outcome in locally advanced rectal cancer.