The more optimal irradiation technique for supraclavicular fossa for breast cancer

摘要

Background and objective: Postoperative supraclavicular fossa(SF) irradiation are typically used for breast cancer patients who had axillary positive lymph nodes. Currently, the common technique used is to use a single 6-Mv photon or 6-Mv photon plus 9-12Mev electron with a dose prescription to point of 3cm depth. However, it has been shown that the depth of SF varied from patient to patient. Therefore, this variation may lead a less properly dosage coverage for the SF region treated with conventional irradiation technique. The most reasonable method is using CT-simulation to design the individual treatment planning for each patient. Unfortunately, this method can not be used in all radiation centers. The purpose of this retrospective study is to determine a simple and more optimal irradiation technique for the treatment of SF region.