Short-term radiation therapy works well for breast cancer patients

London, Feb 11 (ANI): Researchers in Canada have found that an intense three-week course of radiation therapy is just as effective as the standard five-week regimen for women with early-stage breast cancer.

In the study, lead researcher Dr. Tim Whelan, a professor of oncology of the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine at McMaster University, and colleagues found that women who received the accelerated therapy had a low risk of the breast cancer for as long as 12 years after treatment.

The results are to be published in the Feb. 11 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), and have been presented to a meeting of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology.

The study concluded a shorter, more intense course of therapy is as safe and effective as the standard treatment for select women who have undergone breast-conserving surgery.

Women who receive a three-week treatment - called accelerated hypofractionated whole-breast irradiation - have a low risk of side effects and recurrence of the cancer more than decade after treatment. It is just as effective as the standard five-week course of radiation following surgery to remove the malignancy.

"This is win-win: shorter intense treatment is better for the patient and less costly to provide," said Dr. Whelan, who is also a radiation oncologist at the Juravinski Cancer Centre at amilton Health Sciences. (ANI)