Impact of Prophylactic Bone Radiation Therapy in Patients With Bone Metastases.

Radiation therapy is a common treatment for painful bone metastases, proving effective in 1 to 2/3 of cases after 1 to 10 sessions, with stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) likely offering superior results. Radiation therapy is also used to prevent bone events, although its use is not standardized; the decision to administer it is made by clinicians or through multidisciplinary team (MDT) discussions. Recently, it has been shown that preventive radiation therapy can reduce the risk of skeletal-related events (SREs) in patients at high risk for bone events. The objective is to compare active surveillance with preventive radiation therapy in patients at intermediate risk for bone events.