Brachytherapy in lung cancer: a review

Metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remains the leading cause of cancer death in men and the second leading cause of cancer deaths in women worldwide (1). It is a debilitating disease that results in a high burden of symptoms including shortness of breath, hemoptysis, cough and pain resulting in poor quality of life. Intraluminal brachytherapy (ILBT) has been shown to improve patients’ symptoms in some studies. However, its role in the palliation of these patients amidst the other local treatment modalities such as external beam radiotherapy (EBRT), laser and photodynamic therapy (PDT) remains unclear. Effectiveness in palliation and toxicity profile vary widely between cohorts of patients treated with different fractionation schemes making it difficult to compare them. Finally, ILBT has also been used in different ways to treat patients in a radical setting in small series