Hemithoracic radiation therapy after pleurectomy/decortication for malignant pleural mesothelioma.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate pleurectomy/decortication (P/D) and adjuvant radiotherapy (RT) in the treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM).


METHODS
In a retrospective review, we included MPM patients treated with P/D and adjuvant RT at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center from 1974 to 2003. When indicated, patients received intraoperative brachytherapy to residual tumor.


RESULTS
All 123 patients received external beam RT (median dose, 42.5 Gy; range, 7.2-67.8 Gy) to the ipsilateral hemithorax postoperatively. Fifty-four patients underwent brachytherapy (matched peripheral dose, 160 Gy). The median and 2-year overall survival for all patients was 13.5 months (range, 1-199 months) and 23%, respectively. One-year actuarial local control for all patients was 42%. Multivariate analysis for overall survival revealed radiation dose <40 Gy (p = 0.001), nonepithelioid histology (p = 0.002), left-sided disease (p = 0.01), and the use of an implant (p = 0.02) to be unfavorable. Two patients (1.6%) died from Grade 5 toxicity within 1 month of treatment.


CONCLUSIONS
Pleurectomy/decortication with adjuvant radiotherapy is not an effective treatment option for patients with MPM. Our results imply that residual disease cannot be eradicated with external RT with or without brachytherapy and that a more extensive surgery followed by external RT might be required to improve local control and overall survival.
Gupta
Vishal
V
Department of Radiation Oncology, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY 10021, USA.
Mychalczak
Borys
B
Krug
Lee
L
Flores
Raja
R
Bains
Manjit
M
Rusch
Valerie W
VW
Rosenzweig
Kenneth E
KE
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001918:Brachytherapy / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008654:Mesothelioma / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000401:mortality / Q000532:radiotherapy* / Q000601:surgery; D008875:Middle Aged; D010994:Pleura / Q000601:surgery; D010997:Pleural Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000401:mortality / Q000532:radiotherapy* / Q000601:surgery; D011879:Radiotherapy Dosage; D018714:Radiotherapy, Adjuvant; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate