THURSDAY, Feb. 26, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- Stereotactic radiation may be better than hippocampal-avoidance whole brain radiation for improving symptoms and interference with daily functioning in patients with five to 20 brain metastases, according to a study published online Feb. 19 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Ayal A. Aizer, M.D., from Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, and colleagues evaluated whether stereotactic radiation targeting individual tumors reduces symptom burden and interference with daily function among patients with five to 20 brain metastases, compared with hippocampal-avoidance whole brain radiation. The analysis included 196 patients participating in the phase 3 trial.
The researchers found that patients randomly assigned to stereotactic radiation had a change in the weighted composite MD Anderson Symptom Inventory–Brain Tumor score from 2.69 to 2.37, while hippocampal-avoidance whole brain radiation changed the score from 2.29 to 3.03 (mean difference, −1.06) at six months. Related grade 3 to 5 adverse events occurred in 12 patients in the stereotactic radiation group versus 13 patients in the hippocampal-avoidance whole brain radiation group, with grade 1 to 3 fatigue most frequently reported (28 and 44 percent, respectively).
"For patients with brain tumors, quality of life is so important," Aizer said in a statement. "These results show that expanding the use of stereotactic radiation could minimize patients' symptom burden and help preserve day-to-day functioning and cognitive abilities."
Several authors disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical industry.