Brachytherapy has been proved to be an effective method for the purpose of increasing radiation dose to the tumor and reducing the dose to the surrounding normal tissue. In head and neck cancer, the rationale of brachytherapy is as follows; Firstly, early small lesion is radiocurative and the major cause of failure is local recurrene. Seondly, it can diminish evidently...

PURPOSE: The aim of this study is to look for the possible efficacy of external irradiation for locally advanced papillary thyroid cancers (stage pT4 or N1). METHODS AND MATERIALS: From August 1981 through September 1997, 91 Patients with locally advanced papillary thyroid cancers (stage pT4 or N1) have been treated with external irradiation and followed up at our clinic. All...

PURPOSE: We performed this study to evaluate the prognostic factors and the effect of induction chemotherapy in locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective analysis was done for 130 patients with locally advanced NSCLC treated with curative radiotherapy alone or induction chemo-radiotherapy from January 1986 to October 1996. Eighty-five patients were treated with radiotherapy alone, forty-five...

PURPOSE: To evaluate whether spontaneous apoptosis has prognostic value among patients with squamous cell carcinoma of lung. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Material from 19 patients who received thoracic irradiation between 1990 and 1994 was analyzed. Their stages were II (1), IIIa (8), IIIb (5), and IV (5). Patients were observed from 5 to 67 months (median : 17 months). The spontaneous apoptosis...

PURPOSE: To evaluate the effectiveness of external radiation therapy and the prognostic factors, we retrospectively analyzed therapeutic results of malignant extrahepatic biliary obstruction (EHBO). METHODS AND MATERIALS: We analyzed the results of the external radiation therapy in 59 patients of inoperable malignant EHBO who had been treated with more than 10 Gy of external radiation therapy from April 1984 to...

PURPOSE: To evaluate prognostic factors and survival rates of the patients who received radiation therapy for locally recurrent uterine cervical cancer after curative surgery. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between October 1983 and July 1996, fifty three patients who received radiation therapy for locally recurrent cervical cancer after curative surgery at the Department of Therapeutic Radiology, Kangnam St. Mary's Hospital, The Catholic University...

PURPOSE: The expression pattern of c-jun by ionizing radiation according to cell growth state (exponential growth phase vs. stationary phase) and its relationship with cell cycle redistribution were investigated. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The exponential growth phase (day 4) and stationary phase (day 9) cells were determined from cell growth curve according to the elapse of days in CaSki. The cells were...

PURPOSE: To elucidate the effects of pentoxifylline and diltiazem on the late response of the salivary glands of the rat after irradiation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixteen Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 4 groups : (a) irradiation alone (b) irradiation with pentixifylline (PTX) (c) irradiation with diltiazem (DTZ) (d) irradiation with both PTX and DTZ. Irradiation was given in a single fraction of...

PURPOSE: To assess the histomorphologic changes in the rat lung injury induced by radiation, to determine whether captopril reduces the rat lung injury and to evaluate change in TNF-alpha and TGF-beta in rat lung damage by radiation and captopril. METHODS AND MATERIAL: Right lungs in male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided irradiation alone (10, 20, 30 Gy) or radiation (same dose with...

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to investigate fundamental aspects of the dose response of fluorescent screen-based electronic portal imaging devices (EPIDs). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We acquired scanned signal across portal planes as we varied the radiation that entered the EPID by changing the thickness and anatomy of the phantom as well as the air gap between the phantom and...

PURPOSE: An investigation has been carried out on the factors which affect the response reading of thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLD-100) loaded with thin material in high energy photon. The aim of the study was to assess the energy response of TLD-100 to the therapeutic ranges of photon beam. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this technique, TLD-100 (abbreviated as TLD) chips and three different...

PURPOSE: .In FSRT (Fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy) planning, we studied the usefulness between multiple arc FSRT and conformal FSRT by comparing tumor shape and DVH(dose volume histogram). MATERIALS AND METHDS: In Chungnam Univ. hospital, we had treated the sixteen patients with FSRT from Aug. 1997 to Dec. 1998. In choosing multiple arc FSRT or conformal FSRT, we had considered multiple arc FSRT...