In patients who converted to node negative following NAC, and were treated with breast conserving surgery and radiation, regional nodal radiation was employed in approximately half the patients and omitted in half the patients, reflecting the need for more guidance, an issue that is currently being addressed in a randomized national trial, NRG-B51.

"Patient and physician treatment decisions have been impacted by the increasing use of NAC," said Bruce G. Haffty, MD, Interim Director Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey and Department Chair of Radiation Oncology, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, New Jersey, lead author of the study. Dr. Haffty is also immediate Past Chair of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).


"This study revealed wide variability in practice, particularly regarding administration of radiation therapy and field design following NAC and surgery for breast cancer."

"Discussion and collaboration among all of the members of a multidisciplinary team of medical oncologists, surgical oncologists and radiation oncologists is important for optimal management," Dr. Haffty said. "Patients should be made aware that there are various approaches to local-regional management of breast cancer after neoadjuvant systemic therapy."

"The study also emphasizes the importance of the ongoing national clinical trials regarding local-regional management of breast cancer after NAC," he said. "Specifically, the NRG B51 trial and the Alliance A011202 trial both address important aspects of local-regional treatment and will help to provide guidance on how to best approach local-regional management after neoadjuvant chemotherapy."

For more information, contact ASTRO's Press Office at press@astro.org. To read the study, visit http://www.redjournal.org/article/S0360-3016(15)26687-4/fulltext. For more information about Red Journal, visit www.redjournal.org.



ABOUT ASTRO

ASTRO is the premier radiation oncology society in the world, with more than 10,000 members who are physicians, nurses, biologists, physicists, radiation therapists, dosimetrists and other health care professionals that specialize in treating patients with radiation therapies. As the leading organization in radiation oncology, the Society is dedicated to improving patient care through professional education and training, support for clinical practice and health policy standards, advancement of science and research, and advocacy. ASTRO publishes three medical journals, International Journal of Radiation Oncology • Biology • Physics (www.redjournal.org), Practical Radiation Oncology (www.practicalradonc.org) and Advances in Radiation Oncology (www.advancesradonc.org); developed and maintains an extensive patient website, www.rtanswers.org; and created the Radiation Oncology Institute (www.roinstitute.org), a non-profit foundation to support research and education efforts around the world that enhance and confirm the critical role of radiation therapy in improving cancer treatment. To learn more about ASTRO, visit www.astro.org.

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