Obesity significantly increases side effects of stereotactic body radiation therapy in lung cancer patientsObesity, not the amount of radiation given, is the greatest factor in whether early-stage lung cancer patients develop chest wall pain after receiving stereotactic body radiation therapy to the chest wall, with obese patients being more than twice as likely to develop chronic pain compared to those who have less body weight, according to a first-of-its-kind study presented on Tuesday, November 3, 2009??¦

What are the real benefits versus risks of preventative brain radiation for patients with non-small cell lung cancer?Patients with non-small cell lung cancer treated with preventative brain radiation (called prophylactic cranial irradiation or PCI), significantly decrease their risk of developing brain metastases (cancer spread in the brain) by more than 50 percent (from 18 percent to 8 percent), compared to those who did not receive the treatment, according to a randomized study presented at the plenary session on Monday, November 2, 2009??¦

Three-week course of breast radiation may be as effective as conventional five to seven week course for early breast cancers, says U.S. studyA shortened, more intensive course of radiation given to the whole breast, along with an extra dose of radiation given to the surgical bed of the tumor (concomitant boost), has been shown to result in excellent local control at a median follow up of two years after treatment with no significant sides effects, according to a study presented November 4, 2009??¦

Additional, specialized radiation not necessary for some women after mastectomy After mastectomy, breast cancer patients who receive radiation treatment to the lymph nodes located behind the breast bone do not live longer than those who do not receive radiation to this hard-to-treat area, according to a randomized 10-year study presented at the plenary session, Monday, November 2, 2009??¦

Stereotactic radiosurgery as effective in eliminating Parkinson's disease tremors as other treatments, but less invasiveStereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) offers a less invasive way to eliminate tremors caused by Parkinson's disease and essential tremor than deep brain stimulation (DBS) and radiofrequency (RF) treatments, and is as effective, according to a long-term study presented November 2, 2009.

Source: American Society for Radiation Oncology