Stereotactic body radiation therapy for isolated hilar and mediastinal non-small cell lung cancers

Objectives The seminal phase II trial for pulmonary stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) suggested that SBRT to central lesions resulted in unacceptable toxicity. Alternative dose-fractionation schemes have been proposed which may improve safety without compromise of efficacy. We report our institutional outcomes of SBRT for hilar/mediastinal non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Materials and methods A retrospective review was conducted of patients with NSCLC in a hilar or mediastinal nodal station which was treated with SBRT. Patients presented with a lesion involving the hilum or mediastinum from primary or oligorecurrent NSCLC. Kaplan-Meier with log-rank testing and Cox analysis were utilized for outcomes analysis. Results From 2008–2015, 40 patients with median age of 70 were treated with SBRT for primary/oligorecurrent hilar/mediastinal NSCLC with median follow-up of 16.4 months. 85% presented with oligorecurrent disease at a median of 22.4 months following definitive therapy. The aortico-pulmonary window was the target in 40%, the hilum in 25%, lower paratracheal in 20%, subcarinal in 10%, and prevascular in 5%. The median dose was 48 Gy in 4 fractions (range: 35–48 Gy in 4–5 fractions). Median overall (OS) and progression-free (PFS) survivals were 22.7 and 13.1 months, respectively. Two-year local control was 87.7% and not significantly different between hilar and mediastinal targets. Median PFS was significantly improved in patients with hilar vs mediastinal nodal targets: 33.3 vs 8.4 months, respectively (p = 0.031). OS was not statistically different between hilar and mediastinal targets (p = 0.359). On multivariable analysis, hilar vs mediastinal target predicted for PFS (HR 3.045 95%CI [1.044–8.833], p = 0.042), as did shorter time to presentation in patients with oligorecurrence (HR 0.983 [95%CI 0.967–1.000], p = 0.049). Acute grade 3+ morbidity was seen in 3 patients (hemoptysis, pericardial/pleural effusion, heart failure) and late grade 3+ morbidity (hemoptysis) in 1 patient. Conclusion Hilar/mediastinal SBRT appears to be a safe technique for the local control of isolated nodal disease with limited toxicity from the fractionation schemes utilized.