Radiotherapy in cooperative clinical trials: Northern California Oncology Group (NCOG) method

The inclusion of radiation therapy in multimodality clinical research has demonstrated the need for consultion and standardization of terminology and practice between participating centers. A set of guidelines has been developed to ensure that the radiotherapy section of a cooperative study is comprehensive and unambiguous, and that the techniques, fractionation and dosage used are sufficiently uniform to provide a homogeneous group of patients for comparative purposes. An outline is given for the preparation of radiotherapy protocols including the necessary details of physical factors, localization and simulation, portal and treatment volume definition, dosimetry requirements, specification of dose, and treatment documentation