Intensity-modulated radiotherapy significantly reduces xerostomia compared with conventional radiotherapy

Ipsilateral Irradiation for Oral and Oropharyngeal Carcinoma Treated With Primary Surgery and Postoperative Radiotherapy

“…In bilaterally treated patients, reducing the dose to the parotid glands can be achieved by new radiation delivery techniques such as IMRT (25,26), resulting in improved preservation of salivary output (27) and decreasing xerostomia rates (10). Although studies comparing unilateral irradiation with bilateral parotid-sparing IMRT have not yet been performed, approximately 40% of patients undergoing bilateral irradiation with IMRT will still have moderate or severe xerostomia (10).…”

Interobserver variation in parotid gland delineation: a study of its impact on intensity-modulated radiotherapy solutions with a systematic review of the literature

“…Prospective randomised trials and non-randomised clinical studies have shown IMRT to be superior to conventional twodimensional radiotherapy in the preservation of longterm parotid function [11,12]. As a result, parotidsparing IMRT has become the standard technique for delivering radiotherapy for oropharyngeal cancer.…”

Estimating the Costs of Intensity-Modulated and 3-Dimensional Conformal Radiotherapy in Ontario

“…In Canada, 3-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3D-crt) had been the most common technique, but intensity-modulated radiotherapy (imrt), which spares neighbouring tissue while allowing for higher doses of radiation to be delivered to the target, has become more commonly used 1 . Several studies have shown that the toxicity profile is better with imrt than with 3D-crt, especially in treating prostate and head-and-neck cancers [2][3][4][5][6] . Comprehensive and up-to-date estimates of the costs of imrt and 3D-crt in Canada are needed to assess imrt's value for money.…”