Palliative Thoracic Radiotherapy in the Era of Modern Cancer Care for NSCLC

Abstract

Palliative thoracic radiotherapy provides rapid and effective symptom relief in approximately two-thirds of NSCLC patients treated. In patients with poor performance status, the degree of palliation appears unrelated to the radiation dose or fractionation schedule. Conversely, in patients with good performance status, higher radiation doses administered over longer periods have shown modest survival benefits. These findings stem from studies conducted before the advent of immunotherapy and targeted therapy in clinical practice. Currently, there are no large prospective studies specifically dedicated to palliative radiotherapy conducted in this new treatment era. Modern radiotherapy technologies are now widely available and are increasingly used for palliative purposes in selected patients, reflecting the expanded array of therapeutic options for disseminated NSCLC and improved prognosis. Some traditional tenets of palliative thoracic radiotherapy, such as the improvement of overall survival with a protracted radiation schedule and the use of simple, cost-effective radiation techniques for palliative purposes, may no longer hold true for patients receiving immunotherapy or targeted therapy. The application of IMRT or SBRT in the context of palliative radiotherapy for NSCLC is not yet sufficiently explored, and this is addressed in this review. Moreover, new risks associated with combining palliative radiotherapy with these systemic treatments are being explored and are discussed within the context of palliative care. The optimal timing, doses, fractionation schedules, and treatment volumes for radiotherapy combined with immunotherapy or targeted therapy are currently subjects of investigation. In emergencies, radiotherapy should be used as a life-saving measure without delay. However, for other indications of palliative thoracic radiotherapy, decisions regarding doses, timing relative to systemic treatments, and treatment volumes should be made in a multidisciplinary context, considering the patient’s prognosis, anticipated outcomes, and access to potentially effective treatments. We still lack robust data from prospective studies on this matter. This review examines and discusses available evidence on the use of palliative thoracic radiotherapy within the framework of modern treatment strategies for NSCLC.