Analyzing adjuvant radiotherapy suggests a non monotonic radio-sensitivity over tumor volumes
2008
Understanding Radio-Sensitivity in Tumors
publication
Evidence: moderate
Author Information
Author(s): Jack Y Yang, Andrzej Niemierko, Mary Qu Yang, Youping Deng
Primary Institution: Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School
Hypothesis
Radio-sensitivity is not a monotonic function of tumor volume.
Conclusion
Larger tumor tissues receive a higher cell killing rate upon radiotherapy, contrary to previous beliefs.
Supporting Evidence
- The study found that radio-sensitivity is not a monotonic function over tumor volumes.
- Larger tumors showed higher cell killing rates upon radiotherapy.
- The research challenges the traditional view that larger tumors are more resistant to radiation.
Takeaway
This study found that bigger tumors can actually be more sensitive to radiation than smaller ones, which is different from what many people thought.
Methodology
The study used Poisson statistics and cell killing models to analyze tumor responses to radiotherapy.
Limitations
The study does not provide a way to verify the exact number of remaining tumor cells after surgery.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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