TMED11 Conference
Shaping Future Healthcare with Clinical Research and Personalised Prescribing
Join us at the historic Guildhall, Derry-Londonderry for the 11th TMED Conference – a leading international event in translational medicine bringing together clinical researchers, academics, industry partners and healthcare innovators from across the UK and Europe.
Poster 20- Localised Low- Dose Radiotherapy for Indolent B-Cell Lymphomas: Evaluating Service Devolution, Timelines, and Clinical Outcomes
Authors: Jithin Kuriakose *, A1., Lorna Collins *, A1., Haley Starr *, A1., Raafat Abdel-Malek, A2.
Affiliations: A1 – School of Medicine, University of Ulster, Derry-Londonderry, United Kingdom. A2 – North West Cancer Centre, Altnagelvin Hospital, Londonderry, United Kingdom.
Background/ Introduction: Indolent low-grade B-cell lymphomas, primarily Marginal Zone (MZL) and Follicular Lymphoma (FL), are highly radiosensitive, with radical radiotherapy remaining the curative standard for localised disease. Previously in Northern Ireland, patients were referred centrally to Belfast. Since June 2021, the North West Cancer Centre (NWCC) has offered this service locally for Western and Northern Trust patients. This retrospective analysis evaluates whether this regional service meets international standards while assessing the translational impact of treatment timelines on clinical outcomes.
Material & Methods: A retrospective cohort analysis was conducted on 21 patients (13 female, 8 male) treated at NWCC between July 2021 and December 2025. All patients received a standardised, uniform low-dose protocol of 12 fractions (100% protocol adherence). Key metrics evaluated included the interval between diagnostic biopsy and radiotherapy initiation, overall survival (OS), relapse rates, and clinical toxicities.
Results: Primary pathologies included localised MZL variants (gastric MALT, parotid, orbital) and low-grade FL. The median time from biopsy to treatment was 3.10 months (range: 2–9 months). At a median follow-up of 20.5 months, local disease control was absolute, with a 0% relapse rate (n=0/21) and 100% overall survival. Crucially, stratification demonstrated that an extended biopsy-to-treatment interval exceeding 3 months (n=10) vs. under 3 months (n=10) had no impact on relapse rates or survival. Treatment was exceptionally well-tolerated; documented toxicities were exclusively mild (grade 1/2), including fatigue, abdominal pain, dermatitis, mucositis, and diarrhoea, with no major adverse events.
Conclusion: These findings validate that the devolved NWCC radiotherapy service safely replicates international efficacy standards closer to patients’ homes. From a personalised prescribing perspective, this service demonstrates that a >3-month treatment pathway lag does not compromise clinical durability, providing vital translational reassurance for oncology service configuration and patient risk-stratification.
