{"entity":{"id":"wbrt","kind":"term","name":"Whole-brain radiotherapy (WBRT)","aka":["WBRT","whole-brain","whole-brain radiation","whole brain radiotherapy","hippocampal-avoidance"],"tldr":"Irradiating the entire brain, typically 30 Gy in 10 sessions, when metastases are too numerous or too widespread (leptomeningeal) for focused radiosurgery. It controls disease but dulls memory, so it is now reserved for those cases, with hippocampal-avoidance planning and memantine to limit the decline.","summary":"Once routine for any brain metastasis, WBRT (typically 30 Gy in 10 fractions) is now reserved for numerous or leptomeningeal metastases when SRS is impractical, because randomised trials showed no survival gain over SRS alone and clear neurocognitive harm. Hippocampal-avoidance planning and memantine (NRG CC001) reduce the decline. In small-cell lung cancer, prophylactic cranial irradiation is a related low-dose whole-brain treatment now being replaced by MRI surveillance.","asOf":"2026-09-09","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whole_brain_radiotherapy","links":[{"label":"Wikipedia","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whole_brain_radiotherapy"}],"tags":[],"related":["stereotactic-radiosurgery","brain-metastases","prophylactic-cranial-irradiation","leptomeningeal-disease"],"cancers":[],"sections":["radiation"],"technologies":[],"targets":[],"drugs":[],"companies":[],"institutions":[],"pathways":[],"terms":[],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"dependsOn":[],"notes":[],"category":"Procedures"},"route":"/terms/wbrt/","neighbours":{"term":[{"id":"brain-metastases","kind":"term","name":"Brain metastases (intracranial disease)","route":"/terms/brain-metastases/"},{"id":"leptomeningeal-disease","kind":"term","name":"Leptomeningeal disease","route":"/terms/leptomeningeal-disease/"},{"id":"tnbc-symptom-control-palliation","kind":"term","name":"Palliation in advanced triple-negative breast cancer: brain, bone, pleura, skin and end of life","route":"/terms/tnbc-symptom-control-palliation/"},{"id":"pci-term","kind":"term","name":"Prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI)","route":"/terms/pci-term/"},{"id":"stereotactic-radiosurgery","kind":"term","name":"Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS)","route":"/terms/stereotactic-radiosurgery/"}],"technology":[{"id":"gamma-knife","kind":"technology","name":"Gamma Knife","route":"/technologies/gamma-knife/"},{"id":"prophylactic-cranial-irradiation","kind":"technology","name":"Prophylactic cranial irradiation vs MRI surveillance","route":"/technologies/prophylactic-cranial-irradiation/"},{"id":"radiosurgery-srs","kind":"technology","name":"Stereotactic radiosurgery (Gamma Knife, CyberKnife, linac SRS)","route":"/technologies/radiosurgery-srs/"}],"section":[{"id":"radiation","kind":"section","name":"Radiation Therapy","route":"/fronts/radiation/"}],"cancer":[{"id":"alk-positive-nsclc","kind":"cancer","name":"ALK-positive non-small-cell lung cancer","route":"/cancers/alk-positive-nsclc/"},{"id":"secondary-brain-tumours","kind":"cancer","name":"Brain metastases (secondary brain tumours)","route":"/cancers/secondary-brain-tumours/"},{"id":"extensive-stage-sclc","kind":"cancer","name":"Extensive-stage small-cell lung cancer","route":"/cancers/extensive-stage-sclc/"},{"id":"tnbc","kind":"cancer","name":"Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC)","route":"/cancers/tnbc/"}],"drug":[{"id":"memantine","kind":"drug","name":"Memantine","route":"/drugs/memantine/"}],"trial":[{"id":"alliance-n0574","kind":"trial","name":"Alliance N0574 (NCCTG N0574)","route":"/trials/alliance-n0574/"},{"id":"slotman-pci-es-sclc","kind":"trial","name":"EORTC 08993 (Slotman): prophylactic cranial irradiation in extensive-stage small-cell lung cancer","route":"/trials/slotman-pci-es-sclc/"},{"id":"nrg-cc001","kind":"trial","name":"NRG CC001","route":"/trials/nrg-cc001/"},{"id":"quartz","kind":"trial","name":"QUARTZ","route":"/trials/quartz/"},{"id":"takahashi-pci","kind":"trial","name":"Takahashi trial: prophylactic cranial irradiation with MRI surveillance in extensive-stage small-cell lung cancer","route":"/trials/takahashi-pci/"}]}}