Advancing the Care of Cancer Patients with Vertebral Compression Fractures—A Radiation Oncology Expert Panel Discussion

A closed roundtable discussion on ‘Advancing the Care of Cancer Patients with Vertebral Compression Fractures’ was held in Denver, Colorado, on November 16, 2010. The attendees included six invited local experts—four radiation oncologists, an interventional radiologist, and an orthopedic surgeon. The moderator, Jon Strasser, MD, a radiation oncologist, opened the meeting by explaining that its goal was to identify the barriers to managing vertebral compression fractures (VCFs) in cancer patients and discuss available treatment options. The focus would be on three topics: current treatment practice for spinal metastases; treatment goals in the presence of VCFs; and minimally invasive procedures for VCFs. Each topic is allocated a separate section of the following report of the discussion.