Outcomes of hypofractionated stereotactic body radiotherapy boost for intermediate and high-risk prostate cancer

Treatment of intermediate and high-risk prostate cancer with a high BED has been shown to increase recurrence free survival (RFS). While high dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy, given as a boost is effective in delivering a high BED, many patients are not candidates for the procedure or wish to avoid an invasive procedure. We evaluated the use of stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) as a boost, with dosimetry modeled after HDR-boost.

Fifty patients were treated with two fractions of SBRT (9.5-10.5 Gy/fraction) after 45 Gy external-beam radiotherapy, with 48 eligible for analysis at a median follow-up of 42.7 months.

The Kaplan-Meier estimates of biochemical control post-radiation therapy (95 % Confidence Interval) at 3, 4 and 5 years were 95 % (81-99 %), 90 % (72-97 %) and 90 % (72-97 %), respectively (not counting 2 patients with a PSA bounce as failures). RFS (defined as disease recurrence or death) estimates at 3, 4 and 5 years were 92 % (77-97 %), 88 % (69-95 %) and 83 % (62-93 %) if patients with PSA bounces are not counted as failures, and were 90 % (75-96 %), 85 % (67-94 %) and 75 % (53-88 %) if they were. The median time to PSA nadir was 26.2 months (range 5.8-82.9 months), with a median PSA nadir of 0.05 ng/mL (range <0.01-1.99 ng/mL). 2 patients had a "benign PSA bounce", and 4 patients recurred with radiographic evidence of recurrence beyond the RT fields. Treatment was well tolerated with no acute G3 or higher GI or GU toxicity and only a single G3 late GU toxicity of urinary obstruction.

SBRT boost is well-tolerated for intermediate and high-risk prostate cancer patients with good biochemical outcomes and low toxicity.