RE: effects of oxygenation on radiation damage

[Karin Gordon <KGordon@exchange.HSC.MB.CA>]

Andrew,

Your question took me back 30 years to the late '60's when I was a
radiation therapist assisting in a clinical trial on the effects of
hyperbaric oxygen therapy in conjuction with external beam teletherapy.
Patients were put into a chamber (cylindrical 8-foot-long body was made
of thick lucite, the ends and supporting frame of stainless steel), the
air-tight chamber was sealed and then pure oxygen pumped in to three
atmospheric pressures. After 20-30 minutes the pressurized chamber,
patient and all, was wheeled into the teletherapy (Cobalt-60) room and
the radiation beam was directed through the lucite chamber to the
radiation treatment field previously marked on the patients body.  I
have no idea of the outcome of that particular clinical trial, or if the
hyperbaric oxygen / teletherapy combination treatment still done
anywhere, either in clinical practice or experimentally.

Most solid tumours have necrotic centres and a substantial number of
hypoxic cells surrounding that centre because the tumours have outgrown
their blood supply.  The idea of this experimental therapy was that
enhancing the oxygen level of in-vivo tumour cells would improve their
radiosensitivity, as had been earlier demonstrated with in-vitro
experiments. Most standard textbooks on radiobiology will devote a
chapter or so to the "oxygen effect" and oxgen-enhancement-ratio, etc.
and I offer the following references found in our library:

Radiobiology for the Radiologist.  Eric J. Hall.  Publisher: J.B.
Lippincott Company
Primer of Medical Radiobiology.  Elizabeth Latoore Travis. Publisher:
Year Book Medical Publishers.

 Regards

Karin
*****************************************************
Karin Gordon
Radiation Safety Officer
Health Sciences Centre
GC214 - 820 Sherbrook Street,
Winnipeg, Manitoba
CANADA R3A 1R9

phone (204) 787-2903
fax      (204) 787-1313
e-mail  kgordon@hsc.mb.ca    




>----------
>From: 	Karam, Andrew[SMTP:Andrew_Karam@urmc.rochester.edu]
>Sent: 	Monday, June 28, 1999 1:03 PM
>To: 	Multiple recipients of list
>Subject: 	effects of oxygenation on radiation damage
>
>I am interested in finding out more about the effects of varying degrees of
>oxygenation on modifying radiation damage.  I don't even know where to start
>looking.  Is anyone aware of any standard reference, citation, etc. that can
>provide a quantitative relationship between cellular oxygen levels and the
>effectiveness of radiation-induced damage?
>
>Thanks!
>
>Andy
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