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Postradiotherapy Pelvic Fractures
Cause for Concern or Opportunity for Future Research?
William Small, Jr, MD;
Lisa Kachnic, MD
JAMA. 2005;294:2635-2637.
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Radiotherapy has proven to be an indispensable tool in the curative management of malignant disease, especially for primary carcinomas of the pelvis including prostate, rectal, cervical, endometrial, and anal cancers. In this setting, radiotherapy is used either alone or in combination with systemic, hormonal, and/or surgical therapies. The ultimate goal of this radiation-based therapy is to provide long-term disease control or a "cure" with as little treatment-related morbidity as possible. Yet, the study of long-term toxicity associated with treatments that include radiation therapy has received little attention over the years.
Radiation toxicity can roughly be divided into early and late effects. Early or acute effects, such as nausea, skin reactions, diarrhea, and neutropenia, tend to be temporary and, for the most part, resolve shortly after the completion of therapy. Late effects, such as connective tissue fibrosis and secondary malignancies, can occur long after . . . [Full Text of this Article]
Author Affiliations: Division of Radiation Oncology, Northwestern University, Chicago, Ill (Dr Small); Department of Radiation Oncology, Boston University Medical Center, Boston, Mass (Dr Kachnic).
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Risk of Pelvic Fractures in Older Women Following Pelvic Irradiation
Nancy N. Baxter, Elizabeth B. Habermann, Joel E. Tepper, Sara B. Durham, and Beth A. Virnig
JAMA. 2005;294(20):2587-2593.
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