A modelled comparison of prostate cancer control rates after high-dose-rate brachytherapy (3145 multicentre patients) combined with, or in contrast to, external-beam radiotherapy

There are various potential causes of the lower-than-projected control levels for some schedules of brachytherapy: it seems plausible that cold spots in the brachytherapy dose distribution may be contributory, and the applicability of the LQ model at high doses per fraction remains somewhat uncertain. The results of further trials may help elucidate the true benefit of hypofractionated high-dose-rate brachytherapy.