Chemoradiotherapy

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The chemoradiotherapy (RCT) is a combination of radiation therapy (e.g., for example, with gamma-radiation ) and chemotherapy (administration of cytostatic agents ) for the treatment of malignant tumors , which is often more effective than a sole radiotherapy or chemotherapy.

Simultaneous RCT

With simultaneous RCT, both treatments take place in parallel. The time combination must follow a fixed scheme. As a rule, the patient receives the radiation 30 minutes after the administration of the cytostatics. The treatment intervals generally correspond to those of radiation therapy alone (conventional fractionation: one irradiation daily with 2  Gy ).

Forms of RCT

  • Adjuvant RCT: First, the tumor is surgically removed, then follow-up treatment (relapse prophylaxis or removal of tumor residues) is carried out by RCT. Areas of application are carcinomas of the rectum, cervix, breast (breast-conserving therapy), some brain tumors , head and neck tumors.
  • Neoadjuvant RCT: The tumor is pretreated (reduced in size) by an RCT and then surgically removed. Areas of application are: carcinomas of the esophagus, rectum and the non-small-cell bronchial CA.

Contraindications

Radiation therapy alone, however, is used for prostate cancer and lymphoma . In addition, chemotherapy is avoided in elderly patients and patients in a poor general condition, as the side effects of chemotherapy are not justifiable.

Cytostatics in the RCT

In combination with radiation therapy, depending on the tumor type, z. B. cisplatin , 5-fluorouracil , mitomycin C and temozolomide are used.

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