[Preliminary study on alternative half body irradiation in the treatment of hematological malignancies].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the curative effect of alternative half body irradiation (AHBI) in the treatment of hematological malignancies. METHODS: Seventeen patients with hematological malignancies in complete remission received a high-dose chemotherapy, followed by a two-step AHBI on day 14 (12 approximately 22), upper (UHBI) and lower half body irradiation (LHBI) were sequentially given with each a single dose of 6 approximately 9 Gy at an interval of 23 (7 approximately 34) days. Fourteen received autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (AHSCT) during the same period were chosen as control. RESULTS: Hematopoiesis recovery was observed in all the AHBI patients. The 3-year disease free survival (DFS) rate and the AHBI-related mortality were (52.38 +/- 13.47)% and 0, respectively. The longest survival time was 1446 days with a median follow-up period of 927 (428 approximately 1446) days. The 3-year DFS for the 11 acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) patients was (47.73 +/- 17.55)%. By contrast, the 3-year DFS and the AHSCT-related mortality for the 14 ALL patients in the control AHSCT group were (53.88 +/- 14.08)% and 14%, respectively. There was no significant difference in 3-year DFS between AHBI and AHSCT ALL patients. CONCLUSIONS: AHBI provides a feasible approach for hematological malignancy patients.