Smoking = Worse Side Effects From Radiation Treatment For Prostate Cancer
Researchers at Fox Chase Cancer Center have associated smoking and acute side-effects following radiation therapy for prostate cancer, kind-a validating the previous findings that smoking contributes to poorer outcomes for people treated for many kinds of cancer.In their study, the Fox Chase researchers analyzed the impact of smoking on gastrointestinal (GI) and genitourinary (GU) side effects for 1,194 patients with prostate cancer treated at Fox Chase Cancer Center with 3D conformal radiation therapy between 1991 and 2001.
Smoking is associated with an increased risk of radiation-related side effects in cancers of the head and neck, cervix, lung and breast.
The Fox Chase study findings have just been reported earlier today at the 48th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology in Philadelphia.
According to Niraj Pahlajani, M.D., lead author on the study and a resident in the radiation oncology department at Fox Chase:
“Our patients who smoked during treatment reported having more acute gastrointestinal side-effects such as diarrhea. Fortunately, smoking didn’t appear to impact long-term GI side effects or genitourinary side-effects. These results underscore the importance of smoking cessation prior to radiation therapy.”
Source: Science Daily
Tags: prostate-cancer, radiation-therapy, radiation-therapy-side-effects, smokingRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Prostate & testicular cancer, ~ Diagnosing cancer ~
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