Benefits and difficulties during brain radiotherapy planning with hippocampus sparing

Abstract

Radiotherapy (RT) is frequently used in the treatment of primary and secondary brain tumours, as well as in prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI). The hippocampus plays a key function in the process of remembering, relaying information from short-term to long-term memory as consolidation, and spatial orientation. Sparing the hippocampus during brain radiotherapy aims to prevent hippocampal-dependent cognitive function deterioration. This procedure requires a good knowledge of the brain’s radiological anatomy and use of modern radiotherapy techniques. This article presents the validity of hippocampus sparing during brain radiotherapy, the potential benefits of using this procedure, available clinical premises regarding patient qualification, and technical difficulties in the brain’s RT planning with hippocampus avoidance.