Overview of brachytherapy resources in Europe: a survey of patterns of care study for brachytherapy in Europe.
OBJECTIVE
The Patterns of Care for Brachytherapy in Europe (PCBE) study is aimed at establishing a detailed information system on brachytherapy throughout Europe.


METHODS
The questionnaire was web-based and the analysis used data from each radiotherapy department with brachytherapy. There were three groups: Group I with 19 countries (15 initial European Community (EC) countries plus Iceland, Monaco, Norway and Switzerland -EC+4-), Group II with 10 countries (New European Community countries -NEC-) and Group III with 14 countries (Other European Countries -OEC-).


RESULTS
In the European area there are 36 of 43 countries (85%) which achieved data collection from at least 50% of centres, and were included in the analysis. The tumour site that had the largest number of treated patients was gynaecological tumours. Several variations have been found in the mean number of patients treated per consultant radiation oncologist and physicist; and in the proportion of brachytherapy patients with gynaecology, prostate and breast tumours, by country and by European area. The provided data showed that the average number of brachytherapy patients per centre increased by 10% between 1997 and 2002.


CONCLUSIONS
A European wide evaluation of brachytherapy practice using a web-based questionnaire is feasible and that there is considerable variation in both patterns of practice and available resources.
Guedea
Ferran
F
Department of Radiation Oncology, Institut Català d'Oncologia - IDIBELL, L'Hospitalet del Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain. guedea@iconcologia.net
Ellison
Tracey
T
Venselaar
Jack
J
Borras
Josep Maria
JM
Hoskin
Peter
P
Poetter
Richard
R
Heeren
Germaine
G
Nisin
Roselinne
R
François
Guy
G
Mazeron
Jean Jacques
JJ
Limbergen
Erik Van
EV
Ventura
Montserrat
M
Taillet
Michel
M
Cottier
Brian
B
D001918:Brachytherapy / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005060:Europe; D019538:Health Care Surveys / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D011872:Radiology Department, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires