Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy Boost in Patients With Cervical Cancer Ineligible for Brachytherapy

Standard treatment for locally advanced cervical cancer is external beam radiotherapy followed by brachytherapy (BT). Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) is a possible option for treating patients ineligible for BT.

From October 2012 to July 2020, nine women with cervical cancer received SBRT to high-risk volumes. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to estimate the rates of overall and disease-free survival.

The median age was 52 years; 88% of patients had squamous carcinoma. Reasons for forgoing BT were cervical canal stenosis, treatment refusal and hematological disease. The median boost dose was 18 Gy and the median dose per fraction was 6 Gy. Median follow-up was 16 months. The median survival was 24 months, the actuarial 2-year OS rate was 70%, and median disease-free survival was 11 months. One grade 3 late vaginal toxicity was reported. No acute nor late grade 4 toxicities were observed.

SBRT boost in patients with cervical cancer ineligible for BT led to acceptable survival outcomes and a safe toxicity profile.