International patterns of practice in radiotherapy for bone metastases: A review of the literature
Purpose: Radiation therapy is the standard treatment for symptomatic bone metastases. Several randomized control trials and meta-analyses have concluded a similar efficacy in pain relief when comparing single versus multiple fraction regimes. However, there continues to be reluctance to conform to p...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2014-11-01
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| Series: | Journal of Bone Oncology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S221213741420011X |
| _version_ | 1819064171432509440 |
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| author | Rachel McDonald Edward Chow Henry Lam Leigha Rowbottom Hany Soliman |
| author_facet | Rachel McDonald Edward Chow Henry Lam Leigha Rowbottom Hany Soliman |
| author_sort | Rachel McDonald |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Purpose: Radiation therapy is the standard treatment for symptomatic bone metastases. Several randomized control trials and meta-analyses have concluded a similar efficacy in pain relief when comparing single versus multiple fraction regimes. However, there continues to be reluctance to conform to published guidelines that recommend a single treatment for the palliation of painful bone metastases. The purpose of this literature review is to summarize international patterns of practice, and to determine if guidelines recommending single fraction treatment have been implemented in clinical care. Methods: A literature search was conducted in Ovid Medline, Embase, and Cochrane Central. Search words included, ‘bone metastases’, ‘radiation therapy’, ‘radiotherapy’, ‘patterns of practice’, and ‘dose fractionation’. Both prospective and retrospective studies that investigated the prescription of radiotherapy to bone metastases using actual patient databases were included. Articles were excluded if they investigated hypothetical scenarios. Results: Six hundred and thirteen results were generated from the literature search. Twenty-six articles met the inclusion criteria. Of these, 11 were Canadian, 8 were European, 6 were American, and 1 was Australian. The use of single fraction radiotherapy (SFRT) ranged from 3% to 75%, but was generally lower in American studies. Choice of fractionation depended on a variety of factors, including patient age, prognosis, site of irradiation, and physician experience. Conclusion: Despite the publication of robust randomized control trials, meta-analyses, and clinical practice guidelines recommending the use of a single treatment to palliate uncomplicated bone metastasis, SFRT is internationally underutilized. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-21T15:26:20Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-44d3b11fd7ea4823856b3cd1de3c7644 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2212-1374 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-21T15:26:20Z |
| publishDate | 2014-11-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Bone Oncology |
| spelling | doaj.art-44d3b11fd7ea4823856b3cd1de3c76442022-12-21T18:58:54ZengElsevierJournal of Bone Oncology2212-13742014-11-01339610210.1016/j.jbo.2014.10.003International patterns of practice in radiotherapy for bone metastases: A review of the literatureRachel McDonaldEdward ChowHenry LamLeigha RowbottomHany SolimanPurpose: Radiation therapy is the standard treatment for symptomatic bone metastases. Several randomized control trials and meta-analyses have concluded a similar efficacy in pain relief when comparing single versus multiple fraction regimes. However, there continues to be reluctance to conform to published guidelines that recommend a single treatment for the palliation of painful bone metastases. The purpose of this literature review is to summarize international patterns of practice, and to determine if guidelines recommending single fraction treatment have been implemented in clinical care. Methods: A literature search was conducted in Ovid Medline, Embase, and Cochrane Central. Search words included, ‘bone metastases’, ‘radiation therapy’, ‘radiotherapy’, ‘patterns of practice’, and ‘dose fractionation’. Both prospective and retrospective studies that investigated the prescription of radiotherapy to bone metastases using actual patient databases were included. Articles were excluded if they investigated hypothetical scenarios. Results: Six hundred and thirteen results were generated from the literature search. Twenty-six articles met the inclusion criteria. Of these, 11 were Canadian, 8 were European, 6 were American, and 1 was Australian. The use of single fraction radiotherapy (SFRT) ranged from 3% to 75%, but was generally lower in American studies. Choice of fractionation depended on a variety of factors, including patient age, prognosis, site of irradiation, and physician experience. Conclusion: Despite the publication of robust randomized control trials, meta-analyses, and clinical practice guidelines recommending the use of a single treatment to palliate uncomplicated bone metastasis, SFRT is internationally underutilized.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S221213741420011XBone metastasesRadiationPattern of practiceDose fractionation |
| spellingShingle | Rachel McDonald Edward Chow Henry Lam Leigha Rowbottom Hany Soliman International patterns of practice in radiotherapy for bone metastases: A review of the literature Journal of Bone Oncology Bone metastases Radiation Pattern of practice Dose fractionation |
| title | International patterns of practice in radiotherapy for bone metastases: A review of the literature |
| title_full | International patterns of practice in radiotherapy for bone metastases: A review of the literature |
| title_fullStr | International patterns of practice in radiotherapy for bone metastases: A review of the literature |
| title_full_unstemmed | International patterns of practice in radiotherapy for bone metastases: A review of the literature |
| title_short | International patterns of practice in radiotherapy for bone metastases: A review of the literature |
| title_sort | international patterns of practice in radiotherapy for bone metastases a review of the literature |
| topic | Bone metastases Radiation Pattern of practice Dose fractionation |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S221213741420011X |
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