Use of interstitial brachytherapy in pelvic recurrence of cervical carcinoma: Clinical response, survival, and toxicity

The purpose of this study was to evaluate clinical response, postrecurrence survival, disease-free survival (DFS), and toxicity related to reirradiation in pelvic recurrence of cervical carcinoma. A retrospective cohort study of 45 women undergoing high-dose-rate interstitial brachytherapy (HDR-IB) was conducted from 1998 to 2014. Clinical information, as well as data on the malignancy, primary treatment, HDR-IB technique, and toxicity, was collected. Statistical analysis used chi-square or Fisher's exact test, Kaplan-Meier survival curves and log-rank test, and Cox regression, with p < 0.05 for significance. There were 30 cases (67%) of complete clinical response, with a followup period of 9-129 months (20 alive, 10 died). The 5-year postrecurrence survival rate was 52%. Among 15 women without complete clinical response, the survival rate was low (