Roswell Park Radiation Oncologist Highlights New Insights on Single-Fraction Radiation for Central Lung Tumors

As the American Society for Radiation Oncology gathers for its annual meeting, a radiation oncologist from Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center is highlighting new evidence that a single dose, or “fraction,” of radiation therapy may be as effective as multiple radiotherapy treatments in addressing lung cancer tumors located centrally in the lung.

While stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT), a form of radiation therapy often incorporated into treatment of lung malignancies and other cancers of the organs, is effective and well-tolerated for peripheral tumors located in the outer regions of the lung, the role of single-fraction SBRT in treating central lung tumors is not well-established, says Roswell Park’s Mark Farrugia, MD, PhD, who was invited to share the findings in a talk at ASTRO 2024 today. 

“Treatment of central lung tumors can pose more challenges compared to cancers located in the outer portions or periphery of the lungs,” says Dr. Farrugia, Assistant Professor of Oncology and Radiation Medicine at Roswell Park. “We saw in this pilot study that single fraction stereotactic body radiation therapy demonstrated high rates of tumor control and low toxicity when used to treat central lung tumors.”

“We wondered whether reducing the radiation dose to the organs at risk — even at the expense of controlling the tumor — would lower the risk of toxicity while still achieving acceptable local control. Indeed, this appears to be the case,” says Anurag Singh, MD, Professor of Oncology and Director of Radiation Research at Roswell Park, and senior author of the new study.

Nadia Malik, MD, Assistant Professor of Oncology and Director of Thoracic Radiation Services in the Department of Radiation Medicine at Roswell Park, is first author on the new research.

Dr. Farrugia is presenting the findings at 1:05 p.m. ET in the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Room 147, as part of a scientific session (SS 32) dedicated to clinical trials assessing SBRT to treat lung tumors. For more information, see the study abstract, 285 - A Pilot Study of Single Fraction Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) in Central Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.