Radiotherapy for benign diseases: a retrospective analysis.
OBJECTIVE
Radiotherapy of benign diseases has become a frequently discussed subject while there are neither generally accepted guidelines about the indications of radiotherapy, doses and fractionation schedules nor adequate data about the risks and the effectiveness of irradiation. We have retrospectively analyzed the patients who were irradiated for benign diseases in our department.


METHODS
During the period 1978-1997, a total of 262 patients were irradiated for benign diseases. Megavoltage equipment was used for irradiation of 253 patients, while the remaining 9 patients were irradiated by orthovoltage equipments. The diseases were grouped in 5 categories, and the distribution of the patients referred and irradiated per year was analyzed. Radiotherapy doses, fractionation, response rates and follow-up were evaluated.


RESULTS
The number of irradiated patients has been increasing since the 1990's. The most common indication for irradiation was Graves' ophthalmopathy and the incidence of this group has increased after 1992. On the other hand, the number of patients irradiated for soft tissue, bone and skin diseases, except aggressive fibromatosis, has declined in the past 15 years. Response rates were more than 60% for most of the diseases. The patients' follow-up ranged between 1 and 156 months (median 4 months), but it was rather short for most of them.


CONCLUSIONS
We observed common problems about the irradiation of benign diseases such as variations on the accepted indications, the treatment schedules and followup.
Oner-Dinçbas
F
F
Department of Radiation Oncology, Cerrahpasa Medical School, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey.
Akyazici
E
E
Koca
S
S
Ober
A
A
Okkan
S
S