Correlation of hot spot to breast separation in patients treated with postlumpectomy tangent 3D-CRT using field-in-field technique and mixed photon energies

Radiotherapy to an intact breast was previously determined to have a positive correlation between breast separation measurement and hot spot dose. As breast separation measurement increased, hot spot dose increased. The purpose of this retrospective study was to determine if this correlation persisted despite current techniques including field-in-field (FiF) blocking and mixed photon energies. Radiation treatment plans on unilateral intact breasts from 90 female, early stage breast cancer patients treated with lumpectomy were analyzed.
Source: Medical Dosimetry - Category: Radiology Authors: Source Type: research