Acute adverse events in the DESTINATION 1 trial: A prospective prostate SBRT dose de-escalation feasibility study.

What was studied

This trial looked at men with prostate cancer that had not spread. It ran at more than one hospital. Each man had 5 sessions of focused radiation guided by MRI scans. The plan was redone each day to fit the prostate. The whole gland got a lower dose of 30 Gy. The main tumour area got a higher boost of 45 Gy. Doctors checked side effects up to 12 weeks after the last session. Men also filled in forms about their own symptoms.

What they found

All 60 men were followed for 12 weeks. Grade 2 side effects of the bladder and genital area were seen. They were seen more often than grade 2 bowel side effects. Symptoms flared by the last session of treatment. After that, they slowly got better. Sexual function went down during follow-up at all hospitals. Scores on one symptom form were higher at one hospital than the others.

What it means for patients

The authors say side effect rates were like or above another trial, PACE-B. So the lower dose to the whole gland did not seem to cut side effects. The authors think the tumour boost may have cancelled out any gain. The abstract does not say how well the cancer was kept in check.

Why it is not certain yet

This report covers only 60 men. Follow-up lasted only 12 weeks. So later side effects are not known from this report. The abstract compares its results with a separate trial, not a group inside this study. Results on one symptom form were not the same at each hospital.

Source

Acute adverse events in the DESTINATION 1 trial: A prospective prostate SBRT dose de-escalation feasibility study.

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