Wembley

Researchers are evaluating two types of radiation treatments for women with small, node-negative breast cancer (3 cm or smaller) after breast-conserving surgery. The study aims to find out if partial breast irradiation (PBI) given once a day over one week is not worse than whole breast irradiation (WBI) in preventing cancer from coming back locally and if it leads to better cosmetic outcomes as assessed by patients three years after treatment. This is a phase 3 randomized trial focusing on the comparison of these two radiation approaches. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive either PBI or WBI. Both treatments deliver a total radiation dose of 26 Gy divided into 5 daily sessions over 5 to 7 days (up to 8 days allowed due to holidays). The radiation is carefully targeted to the appropriate breast area, and the study is single-blinded so that patients do not know which treatment they receive to avoid bias in cosmetic assessments. Treatment planning includes using CT imaging and surgical markers for accurate delivery. During the study, participants will be monitored annually for five years to check for local cancer recurrence. Cosmetic outcomes will be assessed by patients themselves at three and five years post-treatment. Other evaluations include tumor characteristics and receptor status, and treatment safety will be observed. The total participation involves follow-up over several years to understand long-term effects of the treatments.