Palliative re-irradiation for in-field recurrence after definitive radiotherapy in patients with primary lung cancer.

AIM To evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of palliative re-irradiation for in-field recurrence of primary lung cancer after radiotherapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS Forty-four patients with locally recurrent lung cancer after radiotherapy were retreated with external beam radiation therapy. To evaluate palliative effectiveness, 31 symptoms in 25 patients were analyzed, while all patients were analyzed to evaluate pulmonary toxicity. RESULTS The median time between prior and secondary irradiation was 12.6 months. Prior radiation doses ranged from 50 to 70 Gy and retreatment ranged from 30 to 60 Gy. The median survival after re-irradiation was 6.5 months. After treatment 74% (23 out of 31) of the symptoms had improvement or complete resolution. After re-irradiation, acute Grade 2 and 3 pulmonary toxicity were recognized in 3 patients each. No significant factors were observed regarding pulmonary toxicity. CONCLUSION Re-irradiation with moderate doses for recurrent lung cancer after definitive radiotherapy is promising in palliating the symptoms and shows acceptable toxicity.