Cardiac late effects after 3D-conformal radiotherapy in female breast cancer patients in Germany
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Abstract
Radiotherapy is routinely considered as a risk factor for cardiac late effects in female breast cancer patients in epidemiological studies with treatment until the 1990s. However, in the late 1990s radiotherapy made a shift from conventional 2D radiotherapy to 3D-conformal radiotherapy based on computed tomography scans. While this resulted in a reduction of radiation exposure to the heart during radiotherapy, the heart remains exposed. Epidemiological studies with long-term follow-up and information on modern radiotherapy after 2000 are sparse. The overall objective of this thesis is to evaluate the potential risk for cardiac late effects of 3D-conformal radiotherapy, especially after 2000, in female breast cancer patients in Germany based on a multicenter epidemiological study.