Imaging findings after radiotherapy to the pelvis.

Carcinoma cervix is the second most common malignancy in women worldwide, and it remains a leading cause of cancer-related death in women in developing countries. The use of radiation therapy to treat cancer inevitably involves exposure of normal tissues. As a result, patients may experience symptoms associated with damage to normal tissue during the course of therapy for a few weeks after therapy or months or years later. Here we describe few cases developed normal tissue complications following radiotherapy to the pelvis. Many factors contribute to risk and severity of normal tissue reactions; these factors are site specific and vary with time after treatment. Treatments that reduce the risk or severity of damage to normal tissue or that facilitate the healing of radiation injury are being developed. These could greatly improve the quality of life of patients treated for cancer.

Medulloblastoma: A common pediatric tumor: Prognostic factors and predictors of outcome.

BACKGROUND: Medulloblastoma is a common malignancy in the pediatric population, accounting for 25% of all childhood brain tumors and relatively uncommon in adults. This review was to investigate treatment outcome and prognostic factors after treatment of medulloblastoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 53 patients with histological confirmed medulloblastoma cases treated at our institute between 2006 and 2012 were included in the study. Demographic variables, clinical variables, radiological findings and treatment details with respect to age, sex, signs and symptoms, location of tumor, extent of surgical resection, histopathology type, radiotherapy dose, follow-up period and outcomes were recorded. Survival was analyzed by using these parameters. RESULTS: Thirty-one (58.5%) patients were pediatric (<14 years), and 22 (41.5%) patients were adults (≥14 years). Duration of symptoms were <3 months in 19 (36%) and more than 3 months in 34 (64%) patients. Tumor resection was performed in all patients with gross total resection in 8 (15%) patients, near total resection in 34 (64%) patients and subtotal resection in 11 (21%) patients. All patients underwent postoperative craniospinal irradiation (CSI) delivering a median craniospinal dose of 36 Gy with additional boosts to the posterior fossa up to 54 Gy. Median overall survival was 50 months for the total group whereas 36 months for pediatric age group and 70 months for adult group. Desmoplastic histology showed an improved outcome compared with other histologies with a median survival of 71 months compared with that of classical medulloblastoma histology being 36 months and other histologies shown a median survival of 34 only. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment of medulloblastoma with surgery and CSI yields long survival rates in both children and adults. Adult age group and desmoplastic histology were associated with a favorable outcome.