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Conventional radiation therapy
Source: Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Treatment (PDQ®)–Health Professional Version, National Cancer Institute.
Source updated: May 15, 2025 · Captured 2026-09-09.
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Historically, conventional primary radiation therapy consisted of approximately 60 Gy to 70 Gy delivered with megavoltage equipment to the midplane of the known tumor volume using conventional fractionation (1.8–2.0 Gy per day).
Improvements in radiation techniques include planning techniques to account for tumor motion, more conformal planning techniques (e.g., 3-D conformal radiation therapy and intensity-modulated radiation therapy), and image guidance during treatment. Modern approaches to delivery of external-beam radiation therapy (EBRT) include hypofractionated radiation therapy and stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT). However, there are limited reliable data from comparative trials to determine which approaches yield superior outcomes.[18,19]
Evidence (conventional radiation therapy):
In the largest retrospective conventional radiation therapy series, patients with inoperable disease were treated with definitive radiation therapy.[21-23]
In the largest retrospective conventional radiation therapy series, patients with inoperable disease were treated with definitive radiation therapy.[21-23]
Patients achieved 5-year survival rates of 10% to 30%.[21-23]
In the largest retrospective conventional radiation therapy series, patients with inoperable disease were treated with definitive radiation therapy.[21-23]
Several series demonstrated that patients with T1, N0 tumors had better outcomes, and 5-year survival rates of 30% to 60% were found in this subgroup.[21,22,24]
In the largest retrospective conventional radiation therapy series, patients with inoperable disease were treated with definitive radiation therapy.[21-23]
However, local-only failure occurs in as many as 50% of patients treated with conventional radiation therapy to doses in the range of 60 Gy to 65 Gy.[25,26]
A single report of patients older than 70 years who had resectable lesions smaller than 4 cm but who had medically inoperable disease or who refused surgery reported the following:[24]
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A single report of patients older than 70 years who had resectable lesions smaller than 4 cm but who had medically inoperable disease or who refused surgery reported the following:[24]
Survival at 5 years after radiation therapy with curative intent was comparable with a historical control group of patients of similar age who were resected with curative intent.
A small case series using matched controls reported the following:[4]
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A small case series using matched controls reported the following:[4]
The addition of endobronchial brachytherapy improved local disease control compared with EBRT.[4][Level of evidence C2]
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Publication references
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Preserved source evidence · Not medical advice