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N Ellerbroek

Publications and source records attributed to N Ellerbroek.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

Treatment of primary neoplasms of the trachea. The role of radiation therapy.

BACKGROUND: Primary tracheal tumors are a rare malignancy. Before 1960, most patients had a biopsy, followed by external orthovoltage irradiation or radon seed implantation. Advances in surgery and in radiation therapy during the past three decades have allowed more patients to undergo definitive treatment. METHODS: Between 1957 and 1988, 22 patients with primary tracheal malignancy were treated with curative intent at The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. Five patients underwent primary surgical resection (Group 1), 5 patients had surgical resection and adjuvant irradiation (Group 2), and 12 patients had primary irradiation (Group 3). RESULTS: Median survival times were 26 months for all patients; 16 months for Group 1; 61 months for Group 2; and 26 months for Group 3. Local control was attained in 1 of 5 patients in Group 1, 4 of 5 patients in Group 2, and 4 of 12 patients in Group 3. Among those treated with primary radiation therapy, local control was attained by three of four patients who received 60 Gy or higher and one of eight patients who received less than 60 Gy. Results of chi-square test (P = 0.03) were statistically significant. Severe complications, including treatment-related deaths, occurred in 2 of 5 patients in Group 1, 2 of 5 patients in Group 2, and 3 of 12 patients in Group 3. CONCLUSION: Radiation therapy has a role in the treatment of patients with tracheal malignancy, either as postoperative adjuvant therapy or as sole therapy for those who refuse surgery or have medically inoperable disease. Alternative methods for increasing the local administration of radiation therapy, such as endotracheal brachytherapy, should be investigated for improvement in local control.

Aged↗

High dose endobronchial irradiation in recurrent bronchogenic carcinoma.

Between November 1988 and March 1990, 24 patients with endobronchial tumors that had recurred after external beam radiation therapy were treated with high dose rate intraluminal irradiation. A remote afterloading high dose rate unit was used, and most patients received two endobronchial treatments, separated by a two week interval. All patients were given the same dose and dose specification to assess the feasibility and complications of the therapy. At each treatment, 15 Gy were delivered with dose specified at a radius of 6 mm from the center of the source, which corresponds to a dose of 9 Gy at a radius of 1 cm. Overall, 21 of 24 patients (88%) showed good symptomatic improvement. Of 18 patients whose chest x-ray showed evidence of collapse or atelectasis caused by tumor obstruction, 15 (83%) had evidence of reaeration. The median duration of palliation, marked by symptoms or a chest x-ray that worsened, was 26 weeks, the range varying from seven to 40 weeks. No patient died as a result of therapy and only one had a complication, bronchospasm, which responded well to bronchodilators. One patient died of hemoptysis approximately three months after treatment. Five additional patients, who were treated off protocol because they had an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of greater than two, also received endobronchial irradiation. All five died within one month from worsening pulmonary disease, and we do not recommend endobronchial irradiation for patients with an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of greater than two. We conclude that high dose rate endobronchial brachytherapy effectively relieves the symptoms of endobronchial obstruction due to recurrent lung cancer and can be given safely as an outpatient procedure. As the complications were minimal in this series treated with a uniform dose of 15 Gy per treatment, future studies should aim at determining the maximum tolerated dose. This technique may also be helpful as a boost after maximal external beam irradiation or to open up areas of atelectasis prior to external beam irradiation.

Adult↗

Treatment of patients with isolated axillary nodal metastases from an occult primary carcinoma consistent with breast origin.

The records of 42 patients who had axillary metastases compatible with a clinically occult breast primary were reviewed. Forty patients had mammography performed as part of their evaluations. Mastectomy yielded the primary tumor in one of 13 patients; biopsy yielded positive results in one of five. Among the 29 patients who did not undergo mastectomy, 16 received breast irradiation, and 13 were simply observed for signs of the primary tumor. For the patients who did not undergo mastectomy, the 5-year actuarial risk for appearance of a primary was 17% in the irradiated group versus 57% in the nonirradiated group (P = 0.06). Patterns of failure are correlated with stage and local and systemic therapy. The results affirm our belief that patients with axillary metastases histologically consistent with breast tumor should be treated identically to patients with similar nodal stages and proven breast primaries.

Adult↗

Is chemotherapy effective in reducing the local failure rate in patients with operable breast cancer?

To evaluate the role of chemotherapy in local control of primary breast cancer, the incidence of local failure was evaluated in 768 patients treated with surgery and adjuvant, combination chemotherapy that contained fluorouracil, doxorubicin, and cyclophosphamide (FAC) at our institute between 1974 and 1982. Of these patients, 429 received postoperative irradiation (XRT) before adjuvant therapy. A group of 178 historical control patients had mastectomies and received irradiation after surgery without chemotherapy. The rates of locoregional recurrence alone in the three groups were as follows: FAC, 12%; FAC plus XRT, 5%; and XRT, 10%. The difference in recurrence rates between the FAC group and the FAC plus XRT subgroup was significant (P less than 0.01). Local failure rates were evaluated by stage and nodal status; patients with Stage III disease and those with four or more disease-positive nodes had a higher incidence of local failure than did patients with Stage II disease or those who had one to three positive nodes. Systemic chemotherapy and local therapies resulted in 50% local control at the time of locoregional recurrence in patients treated with FAC, whereas local control was achieved in 18% of patients with local recurrence in the XRT subgroups. Overall life-time local control of disease was similar whether irradiation was administered initially (in the period after operation) or at the time of local recurrence. Irradiation after mastectomy remains an integral part of a combined modality approach in selected groups of patients.

Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols↗

Salivary gland tumors of the oral cavity.

Between 1961 and 1985, 62 patients with malignant salivary gland tumors of the oral cavity underwent surgery with curative intent at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Medical center. All patients had a minimum follow-up of 2 years. Fifty of 62 (81%) patients presented with T1-2 primary tumors. The tumors arose from the palate in 41/62 (66%) patients. The most common histologic type was adenoid cystic carcinoma comprising 34 of 62 (55%) cases. Radical resection was performed in 46 cases and wide local excision in 16 patients. Postoperative radiation therapy was used in 24 cases due to advanced stage and/or positive surgical margins. Results of treatment were analyzed by stage of disease, modes of treatment, histology, and surgical extent. Local control of small lesions reached 100% at 10 years with either radical resection alone or local excision. With residual tumor at the surgical margins, the incidence of local recurrence was 4/14 (29%) for those who received adjuvant radiation therapy and 5/10 (50%) for those who did not. The vast majority of mucoepidermoid carcinomas were early stage and low grade. These lesions had an excellent prognosis with a control rate of 100%. In contrast, there was a 29% (10/34) failure rate for adenoid cystic carcinoma. The 5-, 10-, and 15-year actuarial survivals for the whole group were 94%, 84%, and 73%, respectively. Our results indicate that for early stage disease, wide local excision may offer patients the chance to avoid the cosmetically and functionally debilitating effects of radical surgery without compromising treatment outcome. Adjuvant radiation therapy appears to reduce the local recurrence for those with residual tumor at the surgical margins.

Adolescent↗

Irradiation of prosthetically augmented breasts: a retrospective study on toxicity and cosmetic results.

Eleven patients with subcutaneous prosthetic breast implants were followed 3-16 years after mammary irradiation. Radiation doses ranged between 45 Gy and 50 Gy to the whole breast, supplemented in five cases with 10-21 Gy scar boost. Evaluation of the cosmetic results revealed a good score in three patients, moderate to fair in three, and poor in five. Of the five patients who had poor postirradiation cosmesis, three had fibrotic changes and encapsulation of the prostheses prior to the irradiation, and two received their irradiation 1 month after the reconstruction. In most of the patients, the nonirradiated breast was augmented with a prosthesis and both breasts could be followed for comparison. The irradiated side usually looked and felt on palpation worse than the nonirradiated, but both breasts exhibited a steady deterioration in appearance over time. The patients who enjoyed better cosmetic results after irradiation had better breast appearance before the radiotherapy. Of three patients treated with lower doses (45 Gy/4.5-5 weeks), two enjoyed good cosmesis. Both patients who received irradiation immediately after reconstructive surgery had poor cosmetic results. Three observations could be made: (a) when the implanted breast was free of fibrotic changes, radiotherapy produced acceptable results, (b) whenever feasible, 45 Gy/5 weeks seemed preferable over higher doses, (c) irradiation immediately after the reconstructive surgery appeared to produce poorer cosmetic results.

Adult↗

Salivary gland tumors of the palate: the UCLA experience.

A retrospective review of 38 patients with salivary gland tumors of the palate treated between 1961 and 1984 is presented. The majority of tumors were identified at an early stage. Most (23 of 38 cases) originated over the hard palate. The most common histological type was adenoid cystic carcinoma (22 cases). Twenty-five patients were treated with surgery alone, of whom, three had wide local excision. Thirteen patients received postoperative radiation therapy in addition to surgery. The local control was comparable for surgery alone and combined therapy (88% and 85%, respectively) although the combined therapy group was biased by more advanced disease, inadequate margins, and/or poorly differentiated histologies. Mucoepidermoid lesions had an excellent prognosis with local control of 100%. In contrast, there was a 23% recurrence rate for adenoid cystic carcinoma. Regional neck node metastasis was noted in 2% of the patients. This experience indicates that radical resection of palate salivary gland malignancy with adequate margins results in excellent local control. Adjuvant radiation therapy is recommended in cases where there is a question of adequate margins and in advanced lesions of high grade tumors.

Adenocarcinoma↗