Dr. Gaspar on Treating Brain Metastases in Lung Cancer

Video

Laurie Gaspar, MD, professor and chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology, Grohne Chair in Clinical Oncology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, discusses the treatment of brain metastases in patients with lung cancer.

Laurie Gaspar, MD, professor and chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology, Grohne Chair in Clinical Oncology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, discusses the treatment of brain metastases in patients with lung cancer.

Gaspar says upwards of 50% of patients with either small cell lung cancer or non-small cell lung cancer will develop brain metastases throughout the course of their disease.

In small cell lung cancer, Gaspar says, there have been studies that have shown that prophylactic cranial radiation reduces the probability of brain metastases. However, many studies had to be combined in order to get a statistically significant figure and only 5% of patients saw improvement at 3 years.

Gaspar says that these findings make it worth discussing the option with these patients.

A study on prophylactic cranial radiation in non-small cell lung cancer did not accrue well, Gaspar says, and the results showed that it did not improve survival. Because of this, Gaspar believes that the idea to study prophylactic cranial radiation will not be resurrected.

Gaspar says that the use of whole-brain radiation therapy for established brain metastases is declining because there is an increase in interest in local treatment, such as radiosurgery. However, radiosurgery does not prevent new metastases from forming and patients must be kept under general surveillance with MRIs.

Related Videos
Emmanuel Antonarakis, MD, associate director, Translational Research, Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota, Clark Endowed Professor of Medicine, University of Minnesota Medical School
Gautam Jha, MD, medical director, M Health Fairview Masonic Cancer Clinic and the Advanced Treatment Center at the M Health Fairview Clinics and Surgery Center—Minneapolis, chair, cancer committee, M Health Fairview Ridges Hospital
Ricardo D. Parrondo, MD, hematologist/oncologist, Mayo Clinic
Ilyas Sahin, MD
Raj Singh, MD
Jaime R. Merchán, MD, professor, co-leader, Translational and Clinical Oncology Research Program, director, Phase 1 Clinical Trials Program, Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center
Saad J. Kenderian, MB, CHB
Tycel Phillips, MD
Minesh Mehta, MD
Shivaani Kummar, MBBS, FACP, Margaret and Lester DeArmond Endowed Chair of Cancer Research, Professor and Division Head, Division of Hematology/Medical Oncology, Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine; co-director, Center for Experimental Therapeutics, co-deputy director, Knight Cancer Institute