Implementation of online workshops on image-guided adaptive brachytherapy (interventional radiotherapy) in locally advanced cervical cancer: Experience of BrachyAcademy

Elena Dizendorf; Alina Sturdza; Luca Tagliaferri; Luca Russo; Nicole Nesvacil; Christian Kirisits

doi:10.1016/j.brachy.2023.01.006

Implementation of online workshops on image-guided adaptive brachytherapy (interventional radiotherapy) in locally advanced cervical cancer: Experience of BrachyAcademy

Brachytherapy. 2023 May-Jun;22(3):343-351. doi: 10.1016/j.brachy.2023.01.006. Epub 2023 Feb 23.

Authors

Elena Dizendorf¹, Alina Sturdza², Luca Tagliaferri³, Luca Russo³, Nicole Nesvacil⁴, Christian Kirisits⁴

Affiliations

¹ Nucletron Operations B.V. (Elekta), Veenendaal, The Netherlands.
² Department of Radiation Oncology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. Electronic address: alina.sturdza@akhwien.at.
³ UOC Radioterapia Oncologica, Dipartimento di Diagnostica per Immagini, Radioterapia Oncologica ed Ematologia, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Agostino Gemelli IRCCS, Rome, Italy.
⁴ Department of Radiation Oncology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.

PMID: 36828765
DOI: 10.1016/j.brachy.2023.01.006

Abstract

Purpose: To provide educational support to brachytherapy users during the COVID-19 pandemic, online workshops were developed and implemented by BrachyAcademy, non-profit peer-to-peer educational initiative in Elekta.

Methods and materials: In 2021-2022 two online workshops were organized. Participating teams had to send a clinical case of locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) including brachytherapy Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) files and questions to the faculty. During the workshop, feedback was given to each clinical case by five faculty members (two Radiation Oncologists, one Radiologist, two Medical Physicists). Participants competed a post-workshop questionnaire which included combination of qualitative and quantitative questions via yes/no responses, Likert scale, and 1 to 10 scale.

Results: Twenty-one teams from eight countries (Europe, Asia, Latin America) participated in two online workshops. The total number of participants was 49. The clinical cases represented LACC with The International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stages from IB3 to IVA. During both, Workshop1 (W1) and Workshop 2 (W2) the following areas of improvement were identified: familiarity with the GEC ESTRO and The International Commission on Radiation Units & Measurements, Report 89 (ICRU 89) recommendations for contouring and planning based on clinical drawings and MRI sequencing choice; appropriate applicator selection; experience with interstitial needles; appropriate applicator reconstruction; dose optimization. The participants rated both workshops with overall scores 8,3 for W1, and 8,5 for W2. In 82% participants the training course fully met expectations for W1, and in 76% in W2.

Conclusions: We successfully implemented the online workshops on image-guided adaptive brachytherapy (IGABT) in LACC. Main performance issues and areas for improvement were identified based on multidisciplinary discussion of participant's clinical cases through all steps of the brachytherapy procedure. We encourage teams to consider online workshops in addition to hands-on training.

Keywords: Cervical cancer; Cervix; Education; Image-guided brachytherapy; Training, Online.

MeSH terms

Brachytherapy* / methods
COVID-19*
Female
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Imaging / methods
Pandemics
Radiotherapy Dosage
Radiotherapy, Image-Guided*
Uterine Cervical Neoplasms* / diagnostic imaging
Uterine Cervical Neoplasms* / radiotherapy