Real-world experience with INTERLACE-style induction chemotherapy: Tumor regression and MRI-guided brachytherapy in locally advanced cervical cancer.

This two-institution retrospective study of eight patients with locally advanced cervical cancer asked whether INTERLACE-style induction chemotherapy (weekly carboplatin/paclitaxel) followed by chemoradiation and MRI-guided brachytherapy could shrink bulky tumors enough to enable adequate brachytherapy coverage. Induction chemotherapy reduced median GTV by 70%, and chemoradiation reduced it by 97% overall, allowing most patients to receive tandem-and-ovoid brachytherapy with EMBRACE-aligned HR-CTV doses (median D90 of 90.5 Gy EQ.D2). Toxicity was manageable and phase-specific, with grade ≥3 neutropenia more common during chemoradiation, and seven of eight patients remained disease-free at a median follow-up of about 62 months, though the small sample size makes these findings hypothesis-generating only.