Review and Uses of Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy for Oligometastases

Learning Objectives After completing this course, the reader will be able to: Assess stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) as an emerging modality in the treatment of oligometastatic patients. Discuss data on safety and efficacy of SBRT in the oligometastatic setting. Evaluate SBRT as a competitive option in patients with a low burden of disease in the metastatic setting. This article is available for continuing medical education credit at CME.TheOncologist.com In patients with proven distant metastases from solid tumors, it has been a notion that the condition is incurable, warranting palliative care only. The term “oligometastases” was coined to refer to isolated sites of metastasis, whereby the entire burden of disease can be recognized as a finite number of discrete lesions that can be potentially cured with local therapies. Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) is a novel treatment modality in radiation oncology that delivers a very high dose of radiation to the tumor target with high precision using single or a small number of fractions. SBRT is the result of technological advances in patient and tumor immobilization, image guidance, and treatment planning and delivery. A number of studies, both retrospective and prospective, showed promising results in terms of local tumor control and, in a limited subset of patients, of survival. This article reviews the radiobiologic, technical, and clinical aspects of SBRT for various anatomical sites. The radiobiologic, technical, and clinical aspects of stereotactic body radiation therapy are reviewed for various anatomical sites of oligometastases.