Dr. Sandler Discusses Hypofractionation in Prostate Cancer

Howard M. Sandler, MD, chair, Department of Radiation Oncology, Ronald H. Bloom Family Chair in Cancer Therapeutics, director, Samuel Oschin Comprehensive Cancer Institute at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, discusses hypofractionation in prostate cancer.

One of the major trends in radiation oncology for prostate cancer is hypofractionation, says Sandler. In the past, radiation oncologists would typically give up to 45 treatments, which is about 9 weeks of therapy. Hypofractionation uses fewer radiation fractions, says Sandler, and studies published in 2016 and 2017 showed that dramatically shorter regimens could produce similar outcomes.

The 2 regimens that have been studied are a 20-fraction regimen and a 28-fraction regimen. These regimens were shown to be noninferior to standard fractionation without increasing side effects, which has led to widespread adoption of these shorter regimens. Sandler says that guidelines are currently being finalized for the use of hypofractionation in prostate cancer.