CushieBlog

Summary: Researchers conducted this study to determine the efficacy of stereotactic radiosurgery with CyberKnife for the treatment of recurrent pituitary adenoma. They concluded that stereotactic radiosurgery for recurrent/residual pituitary adenomas using CyberKnife appears to be relatively safe and effective when compared to conventional radiotherapy.

Methods:

• Included in this retrospective study were patients who underwent cyberKnife radiosurgery for recurrent or residual pituitary adenoma at Barrow Neurological Institute (n=48).
• Patients were followed for an average of 44 months.
• Thirty-three patients had non-functioning adenomas, 10 had acromegaly, and 5 had Cushing’s disease.
• Researchers analyzed the change in tumor size, hormonal function, and complication of therapy for each patient.

Results:

• Tumor resection operation was performed through either the transsphenoidal or transcranial approach before CyberkKnife treatment.
• All patients had either recurrence or residual mass in the cavernous sinus before CyberKnife treatment.
• The total irradiation dose ranged from 2100-4000 cGy in an average of 3-5 fractions.
• Slightly more than half of the patients (n=26, 54.2%) had smaller tumors at follow-up, while 22 (45.8%) had stable tumors.
• Visual acuity remained unchanged post-treatment.
• One patient developed radiation-induced temporal lobe necrosis.
• Four patients (8.3%) required hormonal replacement due to panhypopituitarism.
• Of the 15 patients with functioning adenoma, hormonal function improved in 12.
• Treatment failed in 1 patient with acromegaly, 2 patients with Cushing’s disease, and 1 patient with non-functioning adenoma.

From http://www.mdlinx.com/endocrinology/conference-abstract.cfm/ZZFEBE5A85394340E188330278A399E6CF/57978/?utm_source=confcoveragenl&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=abstract-list&utm_campaign=abstract-AACE2016&nonus=0