Correlation of Pre- and Post-radio-chemotherapy MRI Texture Features With Tumor Response in Rectal Cancer.

BACKGROUND/AIM: The present study aimed to investigate radiomics features derived from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer treated with neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (CRT). PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively evaluated data of 53 patients (32 males, 21 females) with T3/T4 or N+ rectal cancer who underwent MRI before and after CRT. Twenty-seven texture radiomics features were extracted from regions of interest, delimiting the tumor on T2-weighted images. RESULTS: All 27 radiomics features extracted before CRT showed a statistically significant association with the tumor regression grade (TRG) (p<0.05), whereas, after CRT, only the Cluster Prominence value was the only variable to predict TRG (p=0.037, r=0.291). CONCLUSION: All 27 features extracted before CRT were able to predict response to CRT and Cluster Prominence continued to be statistically significant even after CRT. The impact of radiomics features derived from MRI could be further investigated in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer.

Incorporating dose-volume histogram parameters of swallowing organs at risk in a videofluoroscopy-based predictive model of radiation-induced dysphagia after head and neck cancer intensity-modulated radiation therapy.

PURPOSE: To develop a videofluoroscopy-based predictive model of radiation-induced dysphagia (RID) by incorporating DVH parameters of swallowing organs at risk (SWOARs) in a machine learning analysis. METHODS: Videofluoroscopy (VF) was performed to assess the penetration-aspiration score (P/A) at baseline and at 6 and 12 months after RT. An RID predictive model was developed using dose to nine SWOARs and P/A-VF data at 6 and 12 months after treatment. A total of 72 dosimetric features for each patient were extracted from DVH and analyzed with linear support vector machine classification (SVC), logistic regression classification (LRC), and random forest classification (RFC). RESULTS: 38 patients were evaluable. The relevance of SWOARs DVH features emerged both at 6 months (AUC 0.82 with SVC; 0.80 with LRC; and 0.83 with RFC) and at 12 months (AUC 0.85 with SVC; 0.82 with LRC; and 0.94 with RFC). The SWOARs and the corresponding features with the highest relevance at 6 months resulted as the base of tongue (V65 and Dmean), the superior (Dmean) and medium constrictor muscle (V45, V55; V65; Dmp; Dmean; Dmax and Dmin), and the parotid glands (Dmean and Dmp). On the contrary, the features with the highest relevance at 12 months were the medium (V55; Dmin and Dmean) and inferior constrictor muscles (V55, V65 Dmin and Dmax), the glottis (V55 and Dmax), the cricopharyngeal muscle (Dmax), and the cervical esophagus (Dmax). CONCLUSION: We trained and cross-validated an RID predictive model with high discriminative ability at both 6 and 12 months after RT. We expect to improve the predictive power of this model by enlarging the number of training datasets.

Radiotherapy in the COVID-19 Pandemic Era.

BACKGROUND/AIM: In 2020, because of coronavirus pandemic, medical activities changed. The aim of this report is to compare the volumes of Pisa radiotherapy activities from March 9th to May 31st, 2020, with the same period in 2019. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We analyzed the activity of our Unit to evaluate how logistics changes, related to the COVID-19 epidemic, impacted on volumes of radiotherapy (RT) activity and on the number of cases of COVID-19 infections observed in healthcare professionals and patients. RESULTS: The total number of first-time visits between March-May 2020 was reduced by 18%, probably due to delays in diagnosis and histological tests as well as the temporary closure of the operating rooms. None of the healthcare professionals and only two patients contracted the infection. CONCLUSION: We were able to treat all patients referred to our hospital and we were able to reduce risk of infection for both our patients and healthcare staff, guaranteeing continuum of care for our oncological patients.

[18F]Fluorocholine PET/CT-guided stereotactic body radiotherapy in patients with recurrent oligometastatic prostate cancer.

BACKGROUND: In the last years, functional imaging has given a significant contribution to the clinical decision-making of biochemically relapsed prostate cancer (PCa). Hereby, we present a prospective study aiming to validate the role of [18F]Fluoro-Methyl Choline ([18F]FMCH) PET/CT in the selection of PCa patients suitable for stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT). METHODS: Patients with biochemical recurrence limited up to three lesions revealed by [18F]FMCH PET/CT were enrolled in the present study and treated with SBRT on all active lesions. Systemic therapy-free survival since the [18F]FMCH PET/CT was considered as the primary endpoint. RESULTS: Forty-six patients were evaluated, and a total of 67 lesions were treated. After a median follow-up of 28.9 months, systemic therapy was started in 30 patients (65.2%) and median systemic therapy-free survival was 39.1 months (95% CI 6.5-68.6); 6, 12, and 24-month ratios were 93.5%, 73.9%, and 63.1%, respectively. At univariate Cox regression analysis, Delta PSA demonstrated an impact on systemic therapy-free survival (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Based on our findings, [18F]FMCH PET/CT can identify oligometastatic prostate cancer patients suitable for SBRT, resulting in a systemic therapy-free survival of 39.1 months.

Radiation-induced nausea and vomiting in head and neck cancer: Is it something worth considering in the intensity modulated radiotherapy era? "A narrative review".

Radiation therapy is one of the cornerstones in the treatment of head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC), alone or in combination with chemotherapy or surgery. Technological advances which occurred over the last few decades have increased the efficacy of radiotherapy (RT), particularly, intensity-modulated RT (IMRT). IMRT can deliver treatments on complex tumoral targets with dose escalation while sparing organs at risk; anyway IMRT deposits dose in unpredictable patterns outside of the target volume with the purpose of improving conformality. Radiation-induced nausea and vomiting (RINV) is a frequent albeit neglected side effect of RT that can lead to delays in treatment with serious consequences on cure rates. According to several guidelines (MASCC 2016, NCCN 2018), RT for HNSCC has traditionally been regarded as a low emetic risk treatment. Nevertheless, several works suggest that IMRT could increase RINV. Further studies are needed to define the exact incidence and the detailed pathophysiology of RINV in patients with HNSCC treated with state of art IMRT techniques, with and without concurrent chemotherapy.

Radiomics and liquid biopsy in oncology: the holons of systems medicine.

Radiomics is a process of extraction and analysis of quantitative features from diagnostic images. Liquid biopsy is a test done on a sample of blood to look for cancer cells or for pieces of tumourigenic DNA circulating in the blood. Radiomics and liquid biopsy have great potential in oncology, since both are minimally invasive, easy to perform, and can be repeated in patient follow-up visits, enabling the extraction of valuable information regarding tumour type, aggressiveness, progression, and response to treatment. Both methods are in their infancy, with major evidence of application in lung and gastrointestinal cancer, while still undergoing evaluation in other cancer types. In this paper, the main oncologic applications of radiomics and liquid biopsy are reviewed, and a synergistic approach incorporating both tests for cancer diagnosis and follow-up is discussed within the context of systems medicine. TEACHING POINTS: • Radiomics is a process of extraction and analysis of quantitative features from diagnostic images. • Most clinical applications of radiomics are in the field of oncologic imaging. • Radiomics applies to all imaging modalities. • A cluster of radiomic features is a "radiomic signature". • Machine learning may improve the efficacy of radiomics analysis.

Different Timing to Use Bevacizumab in Patients with Recurrent Glioblastoma: Early Versus Delayed Administration.

BACKGROUND/AIM: In patients with recurrent glioblastoma, the best timing to administer bevacizumab is not well addressed yet. In this study, we reported the results of a monocentric experience comparing the early use of bevacizumab (following the first GBM recurrence) with the delayed administration (following the second or even further GBM recurrences). MATERIALS AND METHODS: This analysis included 129 glioblastoma patients with a median follow-up of 22.4 months (range=5.26-192 months). RESULTS: The median time lapse from diagnosis of glioblastoma to disease recurrence was 11.6 months; 13.1 for patients treated with deferred administration of bevacizumab and 9.9 for patients with early administration (p=0.047). Bevacizumab progression-free survival with early and delayed use was 3.45 and 2.92 months, respectively (p=0.504). Survival time from the start of bevacizumab was 6.18 months in patients with early administration, and 6.47 in the delayed administration one (p=0.318). CONCLUSION: Delayed administration of bevacizumab can be considered in selected patients with less aggressive recurrent glioblastoma.

Pattern of dysphagia after swallowing-sparing intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) of head and neck cancers: results of a mono-institutional prospective study.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: A prospective instrumental assessment of late dysphagia using swallowing organs at risk (SWOARs)-sparing IMRT for nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal cancers. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Objective instrumental assessment included fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) and videofluoroscopy (VFS) at baseline, and at 6 and 12 months after treatment. FEES assessed the pharyngeal residue according to the Farneti pooling score (P-score) as follows: 4-5 no dysphagia; 6-7 mild dysphagia; 8-9 moderate dysphagia; 10-11 severe dysphagia. Three different consistencies were tested for the P­score: liquid (L), semisolid (SS), and solid (S). VFS assessed penetration-aspiration according to the Penetration-Aspiration Scale (PAS) and two different consistencies of the bolus were tested: thin liquid barium (L) and paste barium (S). RESULTS: 38 patients were evaluable. There was a significant worsening of the P­score at 6 months both for SS (p = 0.015) and S (p < 0.001), which persisted only for S at 12 months (p < 0.0001). Similarly, there was a significant worsening of the PAS score at 6 and 12 months (p = 0.065 and 0.039, respectively) for the S bolus. Overall, 3-7 and 10-14% aspiration after L and S was observed, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Promising results using a SWOARs-sparing IMRT technique are reported. Therefore, treatment plans should be optimized for reducing doses to these structures.

Image-guided Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy in Metastatic Prostate Cancer.

BACKGROUND/AIM: In the last years, the use of Image Guided Stereotactic Radiotherapy (IG-SBRT) in patients with metastatic prostate cancer has increased. In this study, we aimed to assess the role of IG-SBRT in terms of local control and safety in patients with metastatic prostate cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Primary and secondary endpoints of this prospective observational study were local control and safety related to IG-SBRT. All lesions were treated with 24 Gy as a single fraction or 27 Gy in 3 fractions. After SBRT, Systemic therapies were administered only after the occurrence of more than three synchronous active lesions in oligometastatic patients (patients with less than 4 active synchronous lesions) or new lesions occurrence in patients with more than 3 synchronous lesions. RESULTS: From April 2011 to June 2017, 78 metastatic lesions (32 bone and 46 node) from 51 patients with prostate cancer were treated. After a median follow-up of 18.5 months (range=3-103 months), only 2 lesions (4%) relapsed inside the radiation field. All local recurrences were located on the bone. Estimated 12 and 24 months local control ratios were 98.7 and 97.4%, respectively. Except for one case, toxicity greater than G2 was not recorded. CONCLUSION: IG-SBRT is safe and can be considered as a valid therapy in patients with metastatic prostate cancer requiring a long-lasting metastases control.

Long-Term PSA Control with Repeated Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy in a Patient with Oligometastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer.

Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most common malignancies and main causes of cancer death in Western countries. In the presence of metastatic disease, systemic treatment remains the main clinical option. However, since the introduction of highly sensitive imaging techniques, a new clinical 'entity' of metastatic patients with a limited number of lesions has been defined: oligometastatic patients. In this patient group, the use of stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) or other local therapies against all active sites of disease revealed by 18F-choline positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) could achieve sufficient prostate-specific antigen (PSA) control. However, a clear benefit of this procedure in terms of significant endpoints is yet to be demonstrated. This case report describes our experience with treating a castration-resistant PCa patient with 18F-choline PET/CT-guided SBRT. Because of the occurrence of 5 metachronous lesions over 4 years, the pattern of recurrence was defined by the local multidisciplinary team as oligometastatic disease, and the patient was treated with 5 courses of SBRT which yielded good PSA control. He started systemic therapy with abiraterone acetate almost 5 years after the diagnosis of recurrent PCa.

[(18)F]Choline PET/CT and stereotactic body radiotherapy on treatment decision making of oligometastatic prostate cancer patients: preliminary results.

BACKGROUND: A new entity of patients with recurrent prostate cancer limited to a small number of active metastatic lesions is having growing interest: the oligometastatic patients. Patients with oligometastatic disease could eventually be managed by treating all the active lesions with local therapy, i.e. either surgery or ablative stereotactic body radiotherapy. This study aims to assess the impact of [(18)F]Choline ([(18)F]FMCH) PET/CT and the use stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) in patients (pts) with oligometastatic prostate cancer (PCa). METHODS: Twenty-nine pts with oligometastatic PCa (≤3 synchronous active lesions detected with [(18)F]FMCHPET/CT) were treated with repeated salvage SBRT until disease progression (development of > three active synchronous metastases). Primary endpoint was systemic therapy-free survival measured from the baseline [(18)F]FMCHPET/CT. RESULTS: A total of 45 lesions were treated with SBRT. After a median follow-up of 11.5 months (range 3-40 months), 20 pts were still in the study and did not receive any systemic therapy. Nine pts started systemic therapy, and the median time of the primary endpoint was 39.7 months (CI 12.20-62.14 months). No grade 3 or 4 toxicity was recorded. CONCLUSIONS: Repeated salvage [(18)F]FMCHPET/CT-guided SBRT is well tolerated and could defer the beginning of systemic therapy in selected patients with oligometastatic PCa.

Akt1 rs2498801 is related to survival in head and neck squamous cell cancer treated with radiotherapy.

BACKGROUND: Radiotherapy (RT) with or without chemotherapy (CT) plays an important role as exclusive treatment in patients with head and neck squamous cell cancer (HNSCC). Unfortunately, in some cases, benefit for patients is not recorded and only treatment-related complications are registered. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data relating to Akt1 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and response to treatment of 46 patients treated with exclusive RT or RT-CT for HNSCC were evaluated. RESULTS: For heterozygous patients median overall survival was 28.5 months, while for the wild-type group median overall survival was 10.9 (p=0.019). Three-year survival was 85% for mutated Akt1 homozygosis and 40% for patients with a heterozygous status (p=0.019, hazard ratio (HR)=7.960). CONCLUSION: SNP of rs2498804 can recognize patients resistant to RT-CT. Further studies are needed to confirm our data and to investigate the role of Akt SNPs in HNSCC patients.

Radio-chemotherapy with temozolomide in elderly patients with glioblastoma. A mono-institutional experience.

AIM: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the toxicity and clinical outcome of radio-chemotherapy with temozolomide in patients with glioblastoma aged more than 65 years. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The analysis was performed in 20 male and 20 female patients with a mean age at diagnosis of 71.2 (range=65-81) years, with Karnofsky performance status greater than 70 without important comorbidities. RESULTS: Toxicities related to temozolomide and concomitant radiochemotherapy were similar to those reported for younger patients. The median time to progression and median overall survival of the entire cohort, from the date of diagnosis, were 10.6 (range=6.7-14.4) months and 19.3 (range=17.8-20.7) months, respectively. No significant results for overall survival analysis were found for age at diagnosis and cardiovascular risk factors, as covariates, with hazard ratios of 1.00 (95% confidence interval=0.92-1.10) and 0.9 (95% confidence interval=0.43-1.88), respectively. CONCLUSION: Considering the relative good toxicity profile and the efficacy of treatment, our experience supports the use of radiochemotherapy with temozolomide in older patients with glioblastoma.