Radiation therapy of sinonasal cancer

2021.11.24 | Graduate School of Health

On Friday 10 December at 15:00, Maja Bendtsen Sharma defends her PhD dissertation entitled "Radiation therapy of sinonasal cancer".

Sinonasal cancer is a rare disease with a relatively poor prognosis. The symptoms mimic a common cold, and the tumours are often advanced at the time of diagnosis. The majority of patients are treated with a combination of radiotherapy and surgery, and the treatment is difficult due to important organs located close to the tumours, including the brain, the eyes, and the pituitary gland. Irradiation of these tissues might cause severe and permanent damage, with a potential significant impact on the patients' quality of life. It is therefore a major challenge to deliver sufficient radiation dose to the tumours while sparing adjacent organs.

In a Ph.D. project from Aarhus University, Health, late toxicity was evaluated in patients treated with curatively intended radiotherapy for sinonasal cancer in 2008-2015. A total of 37% of the patients had impaired cognitive function, 19% suffered radiation-induced damage to the eyes or the optic nerves, and 22% displayed radiation-induced pituitary insufficiency. Based on the results, a prospective systematic registration of late toxicity has been initiated in patients treated for sinonasal cancer in Denmark, and the national radiotherapy guidelines have been revised.

Based on the results from the Ph.D. project, proton therapy is now introduced in Denmark as a potential replacement of the traditional radiotherapy.

The summary is written by the PhD student.

The defence is public and takes place in Auditorium C114-101, Aarhus University Hospital, Palle Juul-Jensens Boulevard 99, entrance C, 8200 Aarhus N. Please read the attached press release for more information.

Contact:

PhD student Maja Bendtsen Sharma

Mail: majasharma@oncology.au.dk

Phone: (+45) 27282039

Read full press release