title: Cranial irradiation in patients with brain metastasis: a retrospective study of timing.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  A retrospective study was conducted to determine the importance of the interval between diagnosis of brain metastasis (BRM) and cranial irradiation (CI).
  
  
  METHODS
  The charts of 92 patients with a known diagnosis of cancer and suspected BRM as shown on radioimaging studies were reviewed retrospectively. The median interval between diagnosis and the onset of CI for BRM was five days; one group of 48 individuals received CI within an interval of five days, and another group of 44 patients after an interval of five days. Symptom palliation, objective responses to CI and survival were evaluated in both groups.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Neither symptomatic and objective responses to treatment nor overall survival differed significantly between the patient groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These observations suggest that while CI is beneficial to most patients with BRM, its timing after the diagnosis of BRM may not seriously affect patient outcome.
authors.affiliation: Division of Radiation Oncology, Louisiana State University School of Medicine, Shreveport, USA.
authors.forename: F L
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: Ampil
authors.forename: G V
authors.initials: GV
authors.lastname: Burton
authors.forename: G M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Mills
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality / Q000532:radiotherapy* / Q000556:secondary*; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012886:Skull / Q000528:radiation effects*; D015996:Survival Rate; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome