Can ICAM Modulation Prevent Lung Injury From Ionizing Radiation?
Affiliations of authors: L. A. Kachnic, Department of Radiation Oncology, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA; S. N. Powell, Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston. Correspondence to: Lisa A. Kachnic, M.D., Department of Radiation Oncology, Boston Medical Center, 88 East Newton St., EB 11, Boston, MA 02118 (e-mail: lisa.kachnic@bmc.org). Pulmonary fibrosis can develop as a consequence of a multitude of causes, including radiation therapy and chemotherapy, all of which have common physiologic and pathologic responses in the lung. Exposure of normal lung tissue to irradiation has two well-recognized adverse effects: pneumonitis and fibrosis (1). Radiation pneumonitis occurs during the acute injury phase, typically within the first 6 months after treatment. The characteristic histologic finding in patients with radiation pneumonitis is a prominent inflammatory cell infiltrate in the alveoli and in the pulmonary interstitium. Radiation-induced lung fibrosis
