An analysis of brachytherapy with computed tomography-guided permanent implantation of Iodine-125 seeds for recurrent nonkeratin nasopharyngeal carcinoma

BACKGROUND: (125)I seed implantation is a new method in treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), and it is worthwhile to evaluate its feasibility. In this study, we performed brachytherapy with computed tomography (CT)-guided permanent implantation of (125)I seeds in the treatment of patients with the recurrence of NPC. METHODS: A total 30 patients (20 male and ten female) at the median age of 55 (range 25–80) years were diagnosed with recurrent nonkeratin NPC, with a total 38 lesions and a short disease-free interval (mediañ11 months) after primary radiotherapy alone or combined with chemotherapy. Patients received CT scan, starting from 2 months after the treatment. Follow-up was conducted for ~2–38 months to observe the local control rate and overall survival rate. We also analyzed the possible correlation between survival periods and the status of recurrent tumors. RESULTS: The local control rates at 6, 12, 24, 30, and 36 months after the procedure of (125)I seed implantation were 86.8%, 73.7%, 26.3%, 15.8%, and 5.3%, respectively. The overall 1-, 2-, and 3-year survival rates were 80.0% (24/30), 30.0% (9/30), and 6.7% (2/30), respectively, with a median survival period of 18 months (17.6±8.6 months). Interestingly, the survival periods of the patients who had primary radiotherapy with or without chemotherapy were 15.8±7.9 and 24.3±7.9 months, respectively. Kaplan–Meier survival analysis demonstrated that χ(2) (log rank) was 7.555, with very significant difference (P<0.01). The survival periods of patients in tumor stages I, II, III, and IV were 25.4±8.7, 19.8±9.4, 16.1±4.5, and 12.8±7.8 months, respectively, with significant differences (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that the survival period of recurrent NPC patients after (125)I seed implantation is inversely related to the tumor stages of the recurrence but not to chemotherapy after the primary radiotherapy. Therefore, CT-guided (125)I seed implantation can be set for treatment of recurrent NPC, for better survival rate with minimal damage.