ESTRO 2025 - Abstract Book

S2153

Interdisciplinary – Education in radiation oncology

ESTRO 2025

239

Digital Poster “Build bridges, not walls,” potential barriers to paediatric palliative radiotherapy in the Greater Middle East & South Asia Zaheeda Mulla 1 , Mohamed Bayoumy 1 , Nadeem Pervez 2 , Amr Muhammed 3 , Ahmed Nadeem Abbasi 4 , Bilal Qureshi 4 , Ahmed Mohamed Ameen Ahmed 3,1 , Ibraheem Faisal Abosoudah 1 , Omran El Koha 5 , Rolina Alwassia 6 1 Oncology, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. 2 Radiotherapy, Sultan Qaboos Comprehensive Cancer Care and Research Centre, Muscat, Oman. 3 Clinical Oncology, Sohag University Hospital, Sohag, Egypt. 4 Oncology, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan. 5 Oncology, Tawam Hospital, Al Ain, UAE. 6 Radiology, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia While palliative radiotherapy (PRT) is widely adopted for adults, it remains infrequently utilized in paediatrics. This study aimed to assess the knowledge and referral practices of radiation oncologists (ROs) and paediatric oncologists (POs) in the Greater Middle East and South Asia (G-MESA) region regarding PRT for paediatric patients, to identify potential barriers to its implementation. Material/Methods: An electronic survey was conducted via email among ROs and POs in G-MESA between August 19 and September 11, 2024, using the validated questionnaires (a 13-item questionnaire for ROs and a separate 8-item questionnaire for POs) by Donati et al, with the consent of the lead author. Data on PRT indications, usage, and barriers were collected and analysed using SPSS statistical software package (version 13: SPSS, Chicago, IL, U.S.A.) with Chi-square tests and univariate analysis to explore correlations between respondent characteristics and their perspectives on paediatric PRT. Results: A total of 76 ROs and 45 POs responded to the survey. Of these, 61.8% of ROs and 51% of POs rated their knowledge of paediatric PRT as sufficient. However, 49.3% of ROs and 60% of POs believed PRT was underutilized. Significant differences in PRT usage were found. For instance, 51.3% of ROs and only 8.9% of POs used PRT for bleeding or hemorrhage (p=0.0002). Conversely, similar PRT usage was observed for brain metastases (82.9% of ROs, 77.8% of POs) and spinal cord compression (72.4% of ROs, 82.2% of POs). Barriers to PRT implementation included logistical challenges, with 64.4% of POs citing distance to RT departments as an obstacle, while 61.3% of ROs noted the lack of paediatric specialists. Knowledge gaps was a major concern amongst PO’s, 91% versus 13.3% of ROs (p=0.000), while ROs were more concerned with side effects than PO’s (67.6% versus 57.8%). Both groups highlighted uncertainties regarding PRT’s tolerability, generally and during systemic therapies. Purpose/Objective: Purpose/Objectives: