Clinical outcomes of CyberKnife stereotactic body radiotherapy for peripheral stage I non-small cell lung cancer

The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcome of CyberKnife stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) for patients with stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Fifty patients with peripheral stage I NSCLC who refused surgery or were medically inoperable were treated with 48-60 Gy (median dose: 57 Gy) in three divided doses. Histopathology was available in 86 % of patients. Thirty patients had a T1 tumor, and 20 patients had T2 tumors. More than 95 % of the target volume was covered by the 72 % isodose surface. Fiducials were implanted in or near the tumors in all patients to track tumor movement and breathing patterns. The median follow-up time was 35 months (3-45 months). Based on computed tomography scans, 40 patients achieved complete remission, six patients achieved partial remission, two patients exhibited stable disease, and two patients had progressive disease. The local control rate (CR + PR) was 92 %, and the 2-year disease control rate (CR + PR + SD) was 96 %. Overall survival for the whole group was 86 % at 1 year and 74 % at 2 years. Grade III toxicity occurred in two patients (4 %) after marker placement. Treatment-related late grade III toxicity occurred in five patients (10 %). Toxicities greater than grade III were not observed. CyberKnife SBRT achieves a high rate of local control and long-term curative effect with acceptable toxicity for patients with inoperable stage I NSCLC. However, long-term follow-up is necessary to evaluate survival and late toxicity.