Now accepting nominations!
SPRO is pleased to offer two awards for individuals who have made notable contributions to the field of palliative radiation oncology through clinical care, patient advocacy, education, or research. Lifetime Service Award This award recognizes an individual whose service to the field over a period of a decade or more has resulted in an indelible transformation and advancement of the field of palliative radiation oncology. Rising Star Award This award recognizes an individual who is either a trainee or within the first two years of an academic appointment whose work shows notable promise to be transformative to the field of palliative radiation oncology. Nominations are considered every year, with awards to be presented at the SPRO meeting during ASTRO Please send your nominations (which can be brief and no more than 500 words), including your name, the nominee’s name, the award you are nominating them for, and a description [...]
FORT Update – Palliative Radiation Perspective
Patients with lymphoma have historically been excluded from palliative radiation oncology trials given that these tumors are more radioresponsive than other solid tumors. Though radiation dose/fractionation schemes used to palliate lymphoma are often extrapolated from those used for solid tumors, we highlight here unique considerations for palliation of patients with indolent, non-Hodgkin B-cell lymphomas. FORT (Follicular Radiotherapy Trial), a phase 3 randomized trial, compared whether low-dose radiation therapy (RT) of 4 Gy in 2 fractions was non-inferior in local control to the standard 24 Gy in 12 fractions for patients with either follicular (FL) or marginal zone lymphoma (MZL). Target sites, rather than patients, were randomized 1:1, stratified by histology, treatment intent, and treatment center. The non-inferiority margin for local progression at 2 years was pre-specified as ≤10%, corresponding to a hazard ratio (HR) of 1.37. Patients were treated with involved-field RT, rather than the more recently adopted involved-site RT [...]
Congratulations to Dr. Tracy Balboni!
ASCO honors Dr. Tracy Balboni with the 2021 Walther Cancer Foundation Palliative and Supportive Care in Oncology Endowed Award. Dr. Tracy Balboni, MD, MPH, FAAHPM, was honored with the 2021 Walter Cancer Foundation Palliative and Supportive Care in Oncology Endowed Award. Established in 2017, this award recognizes a leader who has made a significant contribution to palliative and supportive care in oncology through the prevention, assessment and management of cancer- and treatment-related suffering. Dr. Balboni is a Professor of Radiation Oncology at Harvard Medical School, Program Director of the Harvard Radiation Oncology Program, and Clinical Director of the Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Supportive and Palliative Radiation Oncology Service. She is truly a leader within the field of palliative radiation oncology, establishing one of the first dedicated palliative radiation oncology services as well as serving as a mentor to countless students, residents, and junior faculty. Her research has contributed to significant knowledge [...]
Resident Member Executive Committee
The SPRO executive committee would like to welcome our newest member, Dr. Jordan Hill, who joins as our resident member. We were thrilled by the number of applications for this spot. Thank you to all who applied and submitted a nomination. Meet Dr. Jordan Hill, resident member of the SPRO executive committee: A little about me I completed my undergraduate degree in exercise science at Brigham Young University (BYU), Utah. During my studies I met my lovely wife, Heather, who is from Gilbert Arizona. I am a dual citizen (Canadian/American) and as a result my wife and I took the opportunity to go North to Canada for medical school after completing our undergraduate degrees. I completed medical school and am currently a PGY3 radiation oncology resident at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada. My wife and I have three wonderful children (one boy and two girls) ages 6, 4, [...]
Upcoming CPROG Virtual Event
SAVE THE DATE! The Canadian Palliative Radiation Oncology Group (CPROG), led by Dr. Kristopher Dennis and now formally under the umbrella of the new Supportive Care Committee of the Canadian Association of Radiation Oncology (CARO), will be hosting a virtual event on November 17th. Please email admin@spro.org if you would like to request the Zoom invitation. Topic: CTG SC.24 / TROG 17.06: A Randomized Phase II/III Study Comparing 24Gy in 2 Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy (SBRT) Fractions Versus 20Gy in 5 Conventional Palliative Radiotherapy (CRT) Fractions for Patients with Painful Spinal Metastases Presenter: Dr. Sten Myrehaug, core SC.24 trial Committee Member and Radiation Oncologist from the Odette Cancer Center, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center Date: Tuesday, November 17th, 2020 Time: 1630-1730 Eastern Standard Time
