title: Intraoperative radiation therapy for breast cancer: technical notes.
abstract: Interest in intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT) for breast cancer is increasing as the possible benefits of this technique for the patient become apparent. The rationale for the use of this segmental radiation therapy in place of whole-breast irradiation is based on the finding that approximately 85% of breast relapses are confined to the same quadrant of the breast as the primary tumor. Phase I and II trials have demonstrated no increase in postsurgical complication rates following the use of single-dose IORT in localized breast cancers. Longer follow-up is needed to assess the cosmetic outcome. Clinical trials to evaluate the effectiveness of IORT in the treatment of breast cancer are currently under way at the European Institute of Oncology (EIO) at the University of Milan, Italy, and at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York. Here we report the two different techniques in use in these trials.
authors.affiliation: Breast Department, European Institute of Oncology, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Umberto
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Veronesi
authors.forename: Giovanna
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gatti
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Luini
authors.forename: Mattia
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Intra
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Orecchia
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Borgen
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zelefsky
authors.forename: Beryl
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: McCormick
authors.forename: Virgilio
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Sacchini
mesh_terms: D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy* / Q000601:surgery*; D017321:Clinical Trials, Phase I as Topic; D017322:Clinical Trials, Phase II as Topic; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D015412:Mastectomy, Segmental / Q000379:methods; D011879:Radiotherapy Dosage; D018714:Radiotherapy, Adjuvant; D011882:Radiotherapy, High-Energy / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D014481:United States