Quo vadis radiotherapy? Technological advances and the rising problems in cancer management

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dc.contributor.authorAllen, B.
dc.contributor.authorBezak, E.
dc.contributor.authorMarcu, L.
dc.date.issued2013
dc.descriptionExtent: 10p.
dc.description.abstractPurpose. Despite the latest technological advances in radiotherapy, cancer control is still challenging for several tumour sites. The survival rates for the most deadly cancers, such as ovarian and pancreatic, have not changed over the last decades. The solution to the problem lies in the change of focus: from local treatment to systemic therapy. The aim of this paper is to present the current status as well as the gaps in radiotherapy and, at the same time, to look into potential solutions to improve cancer control and survival. Methods. The currently available advanced radiotherapy treatment techniques have been analysed and their cost-effectiveness discussed. The problem of systemic disease management was specifically targeted. Results. Clinical studies show limited benefit in cancer control from hadron therapy. However, targeted therapies together with molecular imaging could improve treatment outcome for several tumour sites while controlling the systemic disease. Conclusion. The advances in photon therapy continue to be competitive with the much more expensive hadron therapy. To justify the cost effectiveness of proton/heavy ion therapy, there is a need for phase III randomised clinical trials. Furthermore, the success of systemic disease management lies in the fusion between radiation oncology technology and microbiology.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityBarry J. Allen, Eva Bezak, and Loredana G. Marcu
dc.identifier.citationBioMed Research International, 2013; 2013:1-9
dc.identifier.doi10.1155/2013/749203
dc.identifier.issn2314-6133
dc.identifier.issn2314-6141
dc.identifier.orcidBezak, E. [0000-0002-1315-1735] [0000-0003-0084-4089]
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2440/79265
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherHindawi Publishing Corporation
dc.rightsCopyright © 2013 Barry J. Allen et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1155/2013/749203
dc.subjectHumans
dc.subjectNeoplasms
dc.subjectRadiotherapy
dc.subjectCost-Benefit Analysis
dc.titleQuo vadis radiotherapy? Technological advances and the rising problems in cancer management
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

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