Serum superoxide dismutase, a potential predictor for radiation pneumonitis following chemoradiotherapy in non-small cell lung cancer patients

Abstract

Purpose: To explore serum superoxide dismutase (SOD) for predicting radiation pneumonitis (RP) in non-small cell lung cancer patients following chemoradiotherapy.

Methods: Serum levels for SOD were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays prior to radiation therapy (Pre-RT) and post 40 Gy/4 weeks during the treatment (Pos-RT).

Results: SOD concentrations after delivery of 40 Gy/4 weeks was associated with the development of RP. The best predictive ability of SOD was observed for a cut-off value of 56 unit/ml, with a sensitivity of 0.80 (95% CI 0.28–0.99), and a specificity of 0.67 (95% CI 0.43–0.65) (p = 0.040).

Conclusion: Serum SOD may be a potential predictor for RP, which need to be further verified.

Keywords::

• Radiation therapy
• radiation pneumonitis
• non-small cell lung cancer
• superoxide dismutase