Protonterapia em pacientes pediátricos: uma revisão sistemática

Abstract

Proton therapy is a recent treatment method that is based on a proton beam that penetrates the human body to a certain depth, targeting benign or malignant tumors without causing damage to adjacent tissues. The technique is showing several promising results compared to conventional radiotherapy systems. The focus of this project is to conduct a systematic study on pediatric proton therapy applications. To write this project, searches were conducted in four electronic databases: PubMed, ScienceDirect, Scielo, and Google Scholar. The following keywords in Portuguese and English were used: “Pediatric proton therapy,” “pediatric oncology,” “radiotherapy and proton therapy,” “proton radiation”, “radiation oncology,” “proton therapy,” “pediatric proton therapy,” “pediatric oncology,” “proton beams,” “proton therapy in children,” “proton treatment in children,” and “Radiotherapy.” The inclusion criteria for this review were publication dates from 2009 onwards, with a priority for the most recent publications. One of the limitations of this review is that only articles in Portuguese and English were included. A total of 12 relevant publications on the application of proton therapy in pediatric patients were reviewed in this systematic review. The examined investigations spanned a range of clinical conditions and provided details on the impacts and effectiveness of this treatment. The evidence from the review highlights how proton therapy is becoming more widely recognized as a successful pediatric treatment option. Reduced exposure to healthy tissues, fewer adverse effects, and higher rates of local disease control were all supported by substantial data. However, issues related to accessibility and the cost of proton therapy were also observed.