THE ROLE OF RADIOTHERAPY IN ONCOLOGICAL EMERGENCIES

VLOGA RADIOTERAPIJE PRI ONKOLOŠKIH URGENTNIH STANJIH

Abstract

Introduction: Oncological emergencies are clinical situations caused by the development and growth of malignancy, specific oncological treatment, or excretion of various substances from malignant cells, with potentially severe consequences for the patient, in the absence of immediate action based on the diagnosis that has been made.

Purpose: This study aimed to determine the importance of radiotherapy in oncological emergencies, the frequency, the incidence of ?Friday syndrome? and how urgent irradiation was during weekends and holidays.

Methods: The study on the frequency of oncological emergencies, which involved collecting data with the Webdoctor program and a form of a digital fi le of the Institute of Oncology Ljubljana, was carried out at the Radiotherapy Department. The study included data from patients who were urgently irradiated from 1.1.2017 to 31.12.2018.

Results and discussion: Of the 671 patients in the study, urgent irradiation represented, including all days of the week in 2017, 7.5% (1.2% on weekends and holidays), and in 2018 6.5% (0.7% on weekends and holidays), according to all irradiated patients at the Radiotherapy Department. Out of regular working time for simulators (Monday-Friday), there were 4.2% of emergency irradiation preparations. On Fridays, almost a quarter of all preparations were made in both years (23.8%) for urgent irradiation. Regarding the irradiation area, the highest number of urgent irradiations was on the skeleton (38.5%), followed by irradiation of the chest (27.3%) and central nervous system (CNS, 8.3%) (p = 0.001).

Conclusion: Our study aimed to determine the role of irradiation in oncological emergencies and their frequency in relation to various factors. The implementation of urgent irradiation should be fast, time-saving, financially justifiable, and effective.