title: Diarrhoea in irradiated patients: a prospective multicentre observational study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the incidence of cancer treatment-induced diarrhoea in patients submitted to irradiation.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-five Italian radiation oncology departments took part in this prospective observational study and a total of 1020 patients were enrolled. The accrual lasted three consecutive weeks; evaluation was based on diary cards filled in daily by patients during radiotherapy and one week after cessation. Diary cards recorded both the onset and intensity of diarrhoea.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 1004 patients were eligible for this analysis. 147/1004 (14.6%) patients had diarrhoea. The median minimum number of daily events was 1 (range 1-7) with a median maximum events of 3 (range 1-23). 82/147 patients (56.2%) had a drug prescription for diarrhoea. In the evaluation of the onset of diarrhoea, in multivariate analysis, we found the following factors to be statistically significant predictors of an increased likelihood of diarrhoea: primitive tumour site, therapeutic purpose and field size.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients with abdominal-pelvic cancer, treated with curative purpose and using large field sizes are at high risk of cancer treatment-induced diarrhoea. Diarrhoea was also observed in patients treated at other sites. In this population group there is the need for more stringent monitoring during the delivery of radiation therapy.
authors.affiliation: Radiotherapy Centre, "G. Martino" University Hospital, Messina, Italy. Electronic address: stefano.pergolizzi@unime.it.
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pergolizzi
authors.forename: Ernesto
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Maranzano
authors.forename: Verena
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: De Angelis
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lupattelli
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Frata
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Spagnesi
authors.forename: Maria Luisa
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Frisio
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mandoliti
authors.forename: Pietro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Delia
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Malinverni
authors.forename: Fabio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Trippa
authors.forename: Letizia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Fabbietti
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Parisi
authors.forename: Pietro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: De Vecchi
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sansotta
authors.forename: Celestino
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Giorgetti
authors.forename: Tiziano
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Bergami
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Orecchia
authors.forename: Maurizio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Portaluri
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Signor
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pontoriero
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Santacaterina
authors.forename: Davide
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Di Gennaro
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D000008:Abdominal Neoplasms / Q000532:radiotherapy; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D015994:Incidence; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011832:Radiation Injuries / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology; D012307:Risk Factors
keywords: Diarrhoea; Multicentre; Observational; Radiotherapy