Long-Term Outcomes of Ablative Carbon-Ion Radiotherapy for Central Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: A Single-Center, Retrospective Study

• Published in: Cancers Vol. 16; no. 5; p. 933
• Main Authors: Aoki, Shuri, Ishikawa, Hitoshi, Nakajima, Mio, Yamamoto, Naoyoshi, Mori, Shinichiro, Wakatsuki, Masaru, Okonogi, Noriyuki, Murata, Kazutoshi, Tada, Yuji, Mizobuchi, Teruaki, Yoshino, Ichiro, Yamada, Shigeru
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 25.02.2024; MDPI
• Subjects: ablative radiotherapy; Adverse events; Bacterial pneumonia; Bronchus; Cancer; Cancer therapies; Carbon; carbon-ion radiotherapy; central lung tumor; Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; Dosimetry; Esophagus; Lung cancer; Lung cancer, Non-small cell; Lung cancer, Small cell; Lung diseases; Lung diseases, Obstructive; non-small cell lung cancer; Non-small cell lung carcinoma; Obstructive lung disease; Oncology, Experimental; Planning; Pneumonia; Pneumonitis; proximal bronchial tree; radiation pneumonitis; Radiation therapy; Radiotherapy; Small cell lung carcinoma; Spinal cord; Tomography; Tumors; Japan; non-small cell lung cancer; central lung tumor; proximal bronchial tree; carbon-ion radiotherapy; ablative radiotherapy; radiation pneumonitis
• ISSN: 2072-6694; 2072-6694
• DOI: 10.3390/cancers16050933

The aim of this study is to assess the efficacy and safety of ablative carbon ion radiotherapy (CIRT) for early stage central non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). We retrospectively reviewed 30 patients who had received CIRT at 68.4 Gy in 12 fractions for central NSCLC in 2006-2019. The median age was 75 years, and the median Karnofsky Performance Scale score was 90%. All patients had concomitant chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and 20 patients (67%) were considered inoperable. In DVH analysis, the median lung V5 and V20 were 15.5% and 10.4%, and the median Dmax, D0.5cc, D2cc of proximal bronchial tree was 65.6 Gy, 52.8 Gy, and 10.0 Gy, respectively. At a median follow-up of 43 months, the 3-year overall survival, disease-specific survival, and local control rates were 72.4, 75.8, and 88.7%, respectively. Two patients experienced grade 3 pneumonitis, but no grade ≥3 adverse events involving the mediastinal organs occurred. Ablative CIRT is feasible and effective for central NSCLC and could be considered as a treatment option, especially for patients who are intolerant of other curative treatments.