Accelerated Partial Breast Irradiation

Radiation therapy plays an important role in optimizing local control in patients undergoing breast-conserving surgery for early-stage, invasive breast cancer. Standard whole-breast radiotherapy regimens involve the administration of 45 to 50.4 Gy of radiotherapy to the entire breast, 5 days per week, over 5 to 6 weeks. The administration of a localized tumor bed 'boost' of an additional 10 to 16 Gy over 1 to 1.5 weeks further decreases the risks of ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence (IBTR) in patient who underwent limited, breast-conserving surgery followed by whole-breast radiotherapy. Patient demand for convenient adjuvant radiotherapy and early results suggesting acceptable toxicity and cosmesis, is forcing the adoption of APBI approaches such as brachytherapy, 3D CRT, and IORT for treatment of breast cancer. IORT APBI eliminate the need for subsequent outpatient therapy and maximize patient convenience by administration of radiotherapy immediately after lumpectomy.