Brachytherapy in the treatment of thoracic tumors - Lung and esophageal

Brachytherapy for carcinoma of the lung in the form of intersitital implant ation using iodine 125 at the time of surgical resection, and intralumenal treatment as a temporary placement of iridium 192 within the tracheal-brach eal tree are discussed in this article. For endobronchial treatment, specia l emphasis has been placed on high dose rate, considering that this is by f ar the most prevalent technique used now. For esophageal carcinoma, the pro minent technique is intralumenal therapy, once again, using high dose rate equipment that allows treatment as an outpatient. Results for esophageal br achytherapy alone are contrasted with more aggressive treatment using chemo radiation followed by intralumenal brachytherapy for curative intent of pat ients.