IN TRAOPERATIVE RADIATION THERAPY FOR GASTRIC ADENOCARCINOMA

Intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT) is a multidisciplinary approach in which residual tumors or tumor beds are directly irradiated during a surgical procedure. To evaluate its efficacy, from 1985, we conducted a prospective study including non-metastatic gastric adenocarcinoma treated by surgery, IORT (15 Grays) and postoperative external beam radiotherapy (44 Grays). Up to 1993, 51 cases of gastric adenocarcinoma (20 pN0 and 31 pN1-2) have been included in the study. Mortality and morbidity rates were not different from those of surgery alone. The overall 5 year survival rate was 59.1 %, and the pN1N2 5 year survival rate was 50.6'70. These promising results are comparable with those of Asian randomized studies which demonstrate the possible value of IORT in the treatment of gastric adenocarcinoma.