Treatment of COVID-19 pneumonia with low-dose radiotherapy plus standard of care versus standard of care alone in frail patients

• Published in: Strahlentherapie und Onkologie 2023-09, Vol.199 (9), p.847-856
• Main Authors: Arenas, M, Piqué, B, Torres-Royo, L, Acosta, J. C, Rodríguez-Tomàs, E, De Febrer, G, Vasco, C, Araguas, P, Gómez, J. A, Malave, B, Árquez, M, Algara, M, Montero, A, Montero, M, Simó, J. M, Gabaldó, X, Parada, D, Riu, F, Sabater, S, Camps, J, Joven, J
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: COVID-19; Mortality; Oxygen; Parameters; Partial pressure; Pneumonia; Radiation dosage; Radiation therapy; Standard of care; Survival; Thorax
• ISSN: 0179-7158; 1439-099X
• DOI: 10.1007/s00066-023-02067-9

PurposeTo assess the efficacy of lung low-dose radiotherapy (LD-RT) in the treatment of patients with COVID-19 pneumonia.Materials and methodsAmbispective study with two cohorts to compare treatment with standard of care (SoC) plus a single dose of 0.5 Gy to the whole thorax (experimental prospective cohort) with SoC alone (control retrospective cohort) for patients with COVID-19 pneumonia not candidates for admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) for mechanical ventilation.ResultsFifty patients treated with LD-RT were compared with 50 matched controls. Mean age was 85 years in both groups. An increase in arterial oxygen partial pressure (PaO2)/fraction of inspired oxygen (PAFI) in the experimental LD-RT-treated group compared to the control group could not be found at 48 h after LD-RT, which was the primary endpoint of the study. However, PAFI values significantly improved after 1 month (473 vs. 302 mm Hg; p