Evaluation of Early Response to Preoperative Accelerated Partial Breast Irradiation (PAPBI) by Histopathology, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, and 18F-fluorodexoyglucose Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography (FDG PET/CT)

Sophie C. J. Bosma, Femke van der Leij, Paula H. M. Elkhuizen, S. Vreeswijk, Claudette E. Loo, Wouter V. Vogel, Harry Bartelink, Marc J. van de Vijver

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4 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Purpose: This study aimed to find indicators for early response to radiation therapy in breast cancer. These would be of help in tailoring treatment for individual patients. Methods and Materials: We analyzed 66 patients with low-risk breast cancer (≥60 years; cT1-2pN0) treated within the Preoperative Accelerated Partial Breast Irradiation (PAPBI) trial. Patients received radiation therapy (RT; 10 x 4 Gray or 5 x 6 Gray), followed by a wide local excision after 6 weeks. Patients underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and 18F-fluorodexoyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) before RT and 5 weeks after RT, before surgery. We assessed the response to PAPBI using a histopathologic assessment and correlated this with responses on MRI and FDG PET/CT. We calculated the positive predictive values (PPVs) of MRI and PET/CT as the number of true positives (complete response on MRI/normalized at visual evaluation on PET/CT and pathologic complete response) divided by the number of patients with a complete response on MRI/normalized at visual evaluation on PET/CT. Similarly, the negative predictive values (NPVs) of MRI and PET/CT were calculated. Results: The pathologic response was (nearly) complete in 15 (23%) of the 66 patients and partially complete in 28 (42%). The remaining 23 patients (35%) were nonresponders. The PPV of MRI (Response evaluation criteria in solid tumors [RECIST]) was 87.5% and the NPV was 85%. The PPV and NPV of PET/CT were 25% and 92%, respectively. Conclusions: The most accurate method to predict a response and residual disease after preoperative RT in low-risk breast cancer was MRI, using RECIST.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1151-1158
Number of pages8
JournalInternational Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics
Volume110
Issue number4
Early online date2021
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 15 Jul 2021

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