SBRT radiation therapy improves quality of life for pancreatic cancer patients

A randomized phase 2 clinical trial has found that five sessions of stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) better preserve physical function and reduce fatigue in patients preparing for pancreatic cancer surgery compared to 28 conventional radiation treatments administered with chemotherapy.

Results presented at the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) Annual Meeting indicate that while the groups had comparable tumor and surgical outcomes, the SBRT group maintained a higher quality of life. Specifically, the rates of cancer remaining in the lymph nodes after preoperative treatment did not differ significantly between the two groups.

William A. Hall, MD, the trial's principal investigator and professor at the Medical College of Wisconsin, noted that reducing radiation treatment time is significant for patients who have already undergone months of chemotherapy before major surgery.