Carbon ion radiotherapy
Malignant mucosal melanoma treated with carbon ion radiotherapy with concurrent chemotherapy: Prognostic value of pretreatment apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC)

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radonc.2010.09.017Get rights and content

Abstract

Background and purpose

To evaluate the potential of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) value before carbon ion radiotherapy (C-ion RT) for malignant mucosal melanoma (MMM) to predict prognosis.

Materials and methods

We recruited 37 patients with MMM in the head and neck treated by C-ion RT with concomitant chemotherapy. Univariate and multivariate analyses of minimum ADC, mean ADC, tumor volume, age, PS, and gender were performed to identify prognostic factors.

Results

The 3-year local control rate, distant metastasis-free survival rate and overall survival rate of all patients were 81.1%, 37.6% and 65.3%, respectively, with a median follow-up period of 19.0 months. In univariate analyses, lower minimum ADC (⩽0.6380 × 10−3 mm2/s) and lower mean ADC (⩽1.1523 × 10−3 mm2/s) were unfavorable prognostic factors for distant metastasis (p = 0.029 and p = 0.014, respectively), and lower minimum ADC was an unfavorable prognostic factor for overall survival (p = 0.019). However, there was no significant prognostic factor of local control including ADC value. In multivariate analyses, only minimum ADC was selected as a prognostic factor of distant metastasis-free survival and overall survival (p = 0.015 and p = 0.006, respectively).

Conclusion

Minimum ADC can be a prognostic factor of MMM in the head and neck after C-ion RT.

Section snippets

Patient selection and characteristics

Consecutive patients with MMM were recruited from the phase II study of C-ion RT with concomitant chemotherapy for MMM in the head and neck. Before treatment in our institution, all patients underwent whole body computed tomography (CT) and 11[C]-methionine positron emission tomography (PET) to rule out metastasis and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the primary region to confirm the spread of the tumor. The patients’ medical records as well as their CT, MRI and PET data were reviewed

Results

From April 2006 to March 2009, we treated 46 patients with MMM in the head and neck using C-ion RT with concomitant DAV therapy. However, in nine patients, the tumors were too small to be detected on an ADC map. Therefore, 37 patients (19 males, 18 females; median age, 65 years; range, 33–80 years) were enrolled in the present study. Dose distribution, MR images and endoscopic images before and at 6 months and 2 years after C-ion RT in a typical patient who had no recurrence and no severe adverse

Discussion

This survey revealed that minimum ADC was a significant prognostic factor of distant-free survival and overall survival of MMM after C-ion RT with concomitant DAV therapy.

DWI is used for evaluation of tumors at both intracranial and extracranial sites. The technique has been used for differentiating a tumor from nontumorous tissue, for assessment of treatment response and for prediction of treatment outcome [6], [22], [23], [24]. Previous reports on DWI of rats have been used to validate DWI

Conflicts of interest notification

There is no conflict of interest in relation to the present study.

Acknowledgement

This study was partially supported by funding from the Japan Radiological Society.

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