Clin Transl Radiat Oncol 2018 Jan 11
The EMBRACE II study: The outcome and prospect of two decades of evolution within the GEC-ESTRO GYN working group and the EMBRACE studies.
Abstract
The publication of the GEC-ESTRO recommendations one decade ago was a significant step forward for reaching international consensus on adaptive target definition and dose reporting in image guided adaptive brachytherapy (IGABT) in locally advanced cervical cancer. Since then, IGABT has been spreading, particularly in Europe, North America and Asia, and the guidelines have proved their broad acceptance and applicability in clinical practice. However, a unified approach to volume contouring and reporting does not imply a unified administration of treatment, and currently both external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) and IGABT are delivered using a large variety of techniques and prescription/fractionation schedules. With IGABT, local control is excellent in limited and well-responding tumours. The major challenges are currently loco-regional control in advanced tumours, treatment-related morbidity, and distant metastatic disease. Emerging evidence from the RetroEMBRACE and EMBRACE I studies has demonstrated that clinical outcome is related to dose prescription and technique. The next logical step is to demonstrate excellent clinical outcome with the most advanced EBRT and brachytherapy techniques based on an evidence-based prospective dose and volume prescription protocol. The EMBRACE II study is an interventional and observational multicentre study which aims to benchmark a high level of local, nodal and systemic control while limiting morbidity, using state of the art treatment including an advanced target volume selection and contouring protocol for EBRT and brachytherapy, a multi-parametric brachytherapy dose prescription protocol (clinical validation of dose constraints), and use of advanced EBRT (IMRT and IGRT) and brachytherapy (IC/IS) techniques (clinical validation). The study also incorporates translational research including imaging and tissue biomarkers.
Related Questions
Will you be changing your management of locally advanced cervical cancer based on the results of the recently published INTERLACE trial?
Absolutely NOT. INTERLACE results are in abstract form only, including early-stage disease I-II at 86%, and the details regarding radiation are minimal, stating it's prescribed to point A and recommend CT/MR planning (we do not know how many patients underwent image-guided brachytherapy). Also, ind...
For a cervical cancer patient who had involved para-aortic lymph nodes, how much higher do you extend the superior edge of your field if there are nodes close to the renal vessels (i.e. usual superior extend of field)?
In this dataset from us, next station was retrocrural nodes with involvement more than 25% and for that reason, we extend CTV for 2-3 cm above renal vessel to include retrocrural nodal region and space.Kabolizadeh et al., PMID 23849691
For gyn cancers receiving chemoradiation, how high can you boost grossly positive nodes with SIB if not near bowel?
I typically will give a simultaneous integrated boost (SIB) of 60 Gy in 30 fractions to the pelvic and para-aortic nodal CTV, which is the PET positive GTV plus a 3 mm margin. If possible I will boost the GTV of larger gross nodes (>1 cm) to 66 Gy (2.2 Gy/fx) with no margin, if constraints can be me...
Do you sample radiologically negative paraaortic nodes in cervical cancer patients with clinically positive pelvic nodes prior to initiating primary chemoradiation?
Possible options in PET-positive pelvic nodes and negative PA nodes: Treat at least the entire common iliac chain, including the aortic bifurcation nodal region, which is 1 level above the affected pelvic nodes. Treat the subrenal PA region prophylactically, especially if the common iliac region or ...
What brachytherapy dose/fractionation should be used for small cell carinoma of the cervix?
I treat a small cell carcinoma of the cervix the same as a squamous cell or adenocarcinoma as far as the RT portion of treatment. I would give 45 Gy pelvic RT (I would treat PA if involved or if there are positive pelvic nodes). I would give SIB to positive nodes to 55 Gy (2.2 Gy/fx) in the pelvis a...