title: Conservative surgery with combined high dose rate brachytherapy for patients suffering from genitourinary and perianal rhabdomyosarcoma.
abstract: Outcome of patients with genitourinary rhabdomyosarcoma has been improved in the past, but organ preservation rates are too low. Conservative surgery with LDR-brachytherapy has been advocated, but LDR-brachytherapy is often not available. We wanted to establish a novel treatment modality combining HDR-brachytherapy and conservative surgery.
  
  
  
  We performed an organ preserving tumor resection with intraoperative placement of brachytherapy tubes. Suitable patients were selected following assessment of response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy where organ preserving surgical resection was deemed feasible. In bladder-prostate rhabdomyosarcoma, only tumors located below the bladder neck could be treated by brachytherapy. After surgery, high dose rate brachytherapy was carried out for 30-36Gy total dose.
  
  
  
  A total of 11 patients were treated up to now (embryonal histology n=10, alveolar histology n=1) with a median follow-up of 18months [4-80]. All patients were IRS group III. There were no significant side effects. One patient had local relapse and was successfully treated with re-excision. All other patients are in the first complete remission. One patient developed a neurogenic bladder and required creation of a Mitrofanoff stoma.
  
  
  
  Combined conservative surgery and high dose rate brachytherapy is a treatment option for selected rhabdomyosarcoma patients. The paper highlights the essential technical challenges and clearly shows limitations of this treatment approach.
authors: Department of Pediatric Surgery and Pediatric Urology, University Children's Hospital, Tuebingen, Germany. Electronic address: Joerg.fuchs@med.uni-tuebingen.de.
authors: Jörg
authors: J
authors: Fuchs
authors: Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, Tuebingen, Germany.
authors: Frank
authors: F
authors: Paulsen
authors: Department of Radiation Oncology, Goeppingen, Germany.
authors: Martin
authors: M
authors: Bleif
authors: Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, Tuebingen, Germany.
authors: Ulf
authors: U
authors: Lamprecht
authors: Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, Tuebingen, Germany.
authors: Nicola
authors: N
authors: Weidner
authors: Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital, Tuebingen, Germany.
authors: Daniel
authors: D
authors: Zips
authors: Department of Pediatric Cardiology and Intensive Care, University Children's Hospital, Tuebingen, Germany.
authors: Felix
authors: F
authors: Neunhoeffer
authors: Department of Pediatric Surgery and Pediatric Urology, University Children's Hospital, Tuebingen, Germany; Department of Pediatric Surgery, University Hospital Marburg, Germany.
authors: Guido
authors: G
authors: Seitz
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001005:Anus Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery / Q000628:therapy; D001918:Brachytherapy / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods*; D002648:Child; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D020360:Neoadjuvant Therapy; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000209:etiology; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery / Q000628:therapy; D011879:Radiotherapy Dosage; D012208:Rhabdomyosarcoma / Q000601:surgery / Q000628:therapy*; D001749:Urinary Bladder Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery / Q000628:therapy; D014565:Urogenital Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery / Q000628:therapy*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Brachytherapy; Outcome; Rhabdomyosarcoma; Surgery; Urogenital