Concurrent chemoradiotherapy combined with intraoperative radiotherapy forlocally advanced pancreatic cancer: A feasibility study

Initial clinical results of concurrent chemoradiotherapy combined with high -dose intraoperative radiotherapy (IOR) for locally advanced pancreatic can cer were analyzed. Between June 1996 and May 1999, 6 patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer without distant metastasis were treated with pre operative concurrent chemoradiotherapy followed by IOR. Preoperative radiat ion therapy was given by the dynamic are conformal technique with a daily f raction of 1.8 Gy to a total dose of 45 Gy in 5 weeks. Cisplatin (5 mg/day for 4 weeks) and 5-fluorouracil (250 mg/day for 5 weeks) were administered continuously during preoperative radiation therapy. IOR as a single dose of 28 or 30 Gy was given to the gross tumor volume using electron beams of 15 - to 22-MeV. Concurrent chemoradiotherapy was well tolerated, although all of the patients complained of nausea and fatigue. Two patients developed gr ade III leukopenia. No other serious acute toxicity was noted. The median s urvival time of the 6 patients was 17.5 months, which was significantly lon ger than that of our historical control treated with external radiation the rapy with IOR (8 months), although the difference in survival was borderlin e significant (p=0.068). Concurrent chemoradiotherapy followed by high-dose IOR was well tolerated in patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer , and the initial clinical results appeared promising.