Investigation of Pulmonary Complications Induced by Radiotherapy and Chemotherapy in Patients with Breast Cancer through Spirometry, CT Scan Imaging Patterns, and Clinical Criteria in a Six-Month Follow-Up

Bahador, Maryam; Larizadeh, Mohamad Hasan; Samareh Fekri, Mitra; Naghibzadeh-Tahami, Ahmad; Mohseni, Mina; Arabnejad, Fateme

doi:10.30476/mejc.2021.88710.1490

Investigation of Pulmonary Complications Induced by Radiotherapy and Chemotherapy in Patients with Breast Cancer through Spirometry, CT Scan Imaging Patterns, and Clinical Criteria in a Six-Month Follow-Up

Document Type : Original Article(s)

Authors

Maryam Bahador ¹

Mohamad Hasan Larizadeh ¹

Mitra Samareh Fekri ²

Ahmad Naghibzadeh-Tahami ³

Mina Mohseni ⁴

Fateme Arabnejad ¹

¹ Department Of Radiation Oncology, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

² Cardiovascular Research Center, Institute of Basic and Clinical Physiology Sciences, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

³ Modeling in Health Research Center, Institute for Futures Studies in Health, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

⁴ Department of Psychiatry, Sirjan School of Medical Sciences, Sirjan, Iran

https://doi.org/10.30476/mejc.2021.88710.1490

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was to determine pulmonary complications induced by radiotherapy and chemotherapy in patients with breast cancer in a six-month follow-up.
Method: 80 patients with breast cancer who were referred to the Radio-oncology Center in Kerman were included in the current cohort study.
At the baseline, spirometry and lung scan were obtained and all the patients were asked about their respiratory symptoms. After designing the patient’s treatment, dose volume histogram data was extracted. All the tests were repeated six months after radiotherapy. The prevalence of pneumonitis and fibrosis in radiographs were determined clinically and the reduction in the values of pulmonary function test parameters was determined.
Results: In 40% of the patients, pulmonary volume was reduced and in 10%, pulmonary fibrosis occurred. Regarding pulmonary function before and six months after radiotherapy, the results revealed that FeV1 (l/s) parameter decreased from 2.68 to 2.48 (P < 0.0001) six months after radiotherapy. FVC parameter also showed a decrease from 3.14 to 2.91 (P < 0.0001) in the same span of time. The odds of developing clinical symptoms in people with pulmonary fibrosis was five times higher than of those without this condition, (odds ratio: 5.51, 95% confidence interval: 1.10 - 27. 42), which was statistically significant (P = 0.03). None of the factors, including mean lung dose, tamoxifen, and age, affected Fev1 and pulmonary fibrosis.
Conclusion: Our results indicated that 10% of the patients undergoing treatment for breast cancer developed pulmonary fibrosis and 40% of the patients suffered from reduced pulmonary volumes, which was not associated with chemotherapy regimen or the use of tamoxifen.

Keywords

Radiotherapy

Chemotherapy

Breast neoplasms

Complications

How to cite this article:

Bahador M, Larizadeh MH, Samareh Fekri M, Naghibzadeh-Tahami A, Mohseni M, Arabnejad F. Investigation of pulmonary complications induced by radiotherapy and chemotherapy in patients with breast cancer through spirometry, CT scan imaging patterns, and clinical criteria in a six-month follow-up. Middle East J Cancer. 2022;13(4):692-700. doi: 10.30476/mejc.2021.88710.1490.

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