방사선의학 웹진

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Introduction
Non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) most often develops in areas of the skin regularly exposed to the sun and is distinguished from melanoma, which is more serious [[1]
]. The incidence of NMSC, including basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), continues to increase markedly with age, especially in adults >80 years old [[2]
].
Although excision is the main treatment for most operable NMSC, radiation therapy (RT), as an alternative to surgery, can be preferred for patients >60 years old who are not candidates for primary surgery for skin cancers [[3]
]. In addition, RT should be offered for lesions of the central face, lips, eyelids, and ears if surgery leads to inferior cosmetic or functional outcomes [[1]
]. Nevertheless, limited data have been reported on the effectiveness of radiation therapy in the older adults, and few studies have examined the tolerability of radiation therapy in patients with facial NMSC aged ≥80 years [[4]
].
Chronological age is a poor surrogate for functional status or comorbidity burden, which are known to lead to an increase in complications during treatment [[5]
]. These potential age-related barriers impact a patient's decision or ability to receive cancer treatment. In this study, we evaluated the role of RT in older adults with facial NMSC.

Affiliations

Jinhyun Choi 1, So Hyun Park 2
1Department of Radiation Oncology, Jeju National University Hospital, Jeju University College of Medicine, South Korea.
2Department of Radiation Oncology, Jeju National University Hospital, Jeju University College of Medicine, South Korea. Electronic address: psh1012@gmail.com.