Dr. Decker on Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy in Lung Cancer

Roy Decker, MD, PhD, associate professor of Therapeutic Radiology, Yale Cancer Center, discusses stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) as a treatment for patients with lung cancer.

Although SBRT has only been around for about 20 years, it is rapidly becoming a standard of care approach for patients with early-stage non—small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who are not eligible for surgery, says Decker.

A number of attempts to initiate randomized trials comparing the efficacy of SBRT with surgery have failed, mainly due to poor accrual. Currently, a large consortium trial is underway comparing lobectomy with SBRT for patients with early-stage NSCLC who are at a borderline risk for surgery.