Current state of interventional radiotherapy (brachytherapy) education in Italy: results of the INTERACTS survey

Luca Tagliaferri; György Kovács; Cynthia Aristei; Vitaliana De Sanctis; Fernando Barbera; Alessio Giuseppe Morganti; Calogero Casà; Bradley Rumwell Pieters; Elvio Russi; Lorenzo Livi; Renzo Corvò; Andrea Giovagnoni; Umberto Ricardi; Vincenzo Valentini; Stefano Magrini; Directors of the Italian Radiation Oncology Schools

doi:10.5114/jcb.2019.83137

eISSN: 2081-2841
ISSN: 1689-832X

Journal of Contemporary Brachytherapy

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abstract:

Review paper

Current state of interventional radiotherapy (brachytherapy) education in Italy: results of the INTERACTS survey

Luca Tagliaferri

,

György Kovács

,

Cynthia Aristei

,

Vitaliana De Sanctis

,

Fernando Barbera

,

Alessio Giuseppe Morganti

,

Calogero Casà

,

Bradley Rumwell Pieters

,

Elvio Russi

,

Lorenzo Livi

,

Renzo Corvò

,

Andrea Giovagnoni

,

Umberto Ricardi

,

Vincenzo Valentini

,

Stefano Maria Magrini

,

Directors of the Italian Radiation Oncology Schools

J Contemp Brachytherapy 2019; 11, 1: 48–53

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5114/jcb.2019.83137

Online publish date: 2019/02/25

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AMA

Tagliaferri L, Kovács G, Aristei C, et al. Current state of interventional radiotherapy (brachytherapy) education in Italy: results of the INTERACTS survey. Journal of Contemporary Brachytherapy. 2019;11(1):48-53. doi:10.5114/jcb.2019.83137.

APA

Tagliaferri, L., Kovács, G., Aristei, C., De Sanctis, V., Barbera, F.,  & Morganti, A. et al. (2019). Current state of interventional radiotherapy (brachytherapy) education in Italy: results of the INTERACTS survey. Journal of Contemporary Brachytherapy, 11(1), 48-53. https://doi.org/10.5114/jcb.2019.83137

Chicago

Tagliaferri, Luca, György Kovács, Cynthia Aristei, Vitaliana De Sanctis, Fernando Barbera, Alessio Giuseppe Morganti,  and Calogero Casà et al. 2019. "Current state of interventional radiotherapy (brachytherapy) education in Italy: results of the INTERACTS survey". Journal of Contemporary Brachytherapy 11 (1): 48-53. doi:10.5114/jcb.2019.83137.

Harvard

Tagliaferri, L., Kovács, G., Aristei, C., De Sanctis, V., Barbera, F., Morganti, A., Casà, C., Pieters, B., Russi, E., Livi, L., Corvò, R., Giovagnoni, A., Ricardi, U., Valentini, V., Magrini, S.,  and Italian Radiation Oncology Schools, D. (2019). Current state of interventional radiotherapy (brachytherapy) education in Italy: results of the INTERACTS survey. Journal of Contemporary Brachytherapy, 11(1), pp.48-53. https://doi.org/10.5114/jcb.2019.83137

MLA

Tagliaferri, Luca et al. "Current state of interventional radiotherapy (brachytherapy) education in Italy: results of the INTERACTS survey." Journal of Contemporary Brachytherapy, vol. 11, no. 1, 2019, pp. 48-53. doi:10.5114/jcb.2019.83137.

Vancouver

Tagliaferri L, Kovács G, Aristei C, De Sanctis V, Barbera F, Morganti A et al. Current state of interventional radiotherapy (brachytherapy) education in Italy: results of the INTERACTS survey. Journal of Contemporary Brachytherapy. 2019;11(1):48-53. doi:10.5114/jcb.2019.83137.

Purpose
Increased complexity of interventional radiotherapy (brachytherapy – BT) treatment planning and quality control procedures has led to the need of a specific training. However, the details of the features of BT learning objectives and their distribution in the training paths of the Italian Radiation Oncology Schools are not known. This paper aims to provide the actual ‘state-of-the-art’ of BT education in Italy and to stimulate the debate on this issue.

Material and methods
All the Italian radiation oncology schools’ directors (SD) were involved in a web survey, which included questions on the teaching of BT, considering also the 2011 ESTRO core curriculum criteria. The survey preliminary results were discussed at the 8th Rome INTER-MEETING (INTERventional Radiotherapy Multidisciplinary Meeting), June 24th, 2017. The present paper describes the final results of the survey and possible future teaching strategies resulting from the discussion.

Results
A total of 23 SDs answered the survey. The results evidenced a wide heterogeneity in the learning activities available to trainees in BT across the country. While theoretical knowledge is adequately and homogeneously transmitted to trainees, the types of practice to which they are exposed varies significantly among different schools.

Conclusions
This survey proves the need for an improvement of practical BT education in Italy and the advisability of a national BT education programme networking schools of different Universities. Beside the organization of national/international courses for BT practical teaching, Universities may also establish post-specialization courses (‘second level’ Masters) to allow professionals (already certified in radiation oncology) to acquire more advanced BT knowledge.

keywords:

Current state of interventional radiotherapy (brachytherapy) education in Italy: results of the INTERACTS survey

brachytherapy, teaching, interventional radiotherapy, survey