Brachytherapy for carcinoma of the lung.

Most patients referred for radiation therapy have large tumor volumes requiring high doses of radiation for control of locoregional disease. Dose escalation with external-beam radiation therapy is limited by tolerance of the surrounding normal structures. Brachytherapy is one method of delivering a higher radiation dose to the tumor while sparing the surrounding normal tissues, in an attempt to improve local control. Small or occult carcinomas of the lung in medically inoperable patients are another subgroup in whom brachytherapy can be used to boost the external-beam radiation dose.