ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the recent advances in radiotherapy technology that have impacted current radiation treatment of non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). An emerging trend in the radiation treatment of NSCLC is to treat gross tumor alone and forego treatment of elective nodal regions. Large field sizes increase the risk of early and perhaps late toxicity due to the increased volume of normal tissues exposed to doses above threshold. Postoperative radiation in the setting of completely resected NSCLC is somewhat controversial. It is generally accepted that radiation should be offered to patients with positive surgical margins, inadequate resection of the primary lung cancer, and/or inadequate mediastinal lymph-node dissection. Undoubtedly, progress has been made in the treatment of locally advanced NSCLC over the past decades, with disease control and survival improving as chemotherapy has been added to radiation therapy for curative treatment.
