Treatment failure of cervical cancer after radiotherapy

ABSTRACT

Forty-five patients with histologically proven carcinoma of the cervix uteri were treated with radiotherapy. Seventeen patients showed persistent or recurrent disease. There was a statistical significant correlation between treatment failure and stage of the disease, accuracy of intracavitary application and dose of radiation therapy. In conclusion, more than one clinical and geometrical factor were present individually or in combinations in patients with treatment failure, including massive central disease, advanced stage, low haemoglobin level, marked deviation of the application from the st and ard position, suboptimal doses due to discontinuation of treatment by the patients or wrong calculation. This emphasized the importance of early detection of cancer cervix and accurate delivering and calculation of adequate radiation doses to the tumor volume in decreasing the risk of treatment failure