Rare complication resulting from radiotherapy of spinal cord malignancy

A rare complication of irradiation is reported of a ten-year-old boy who had been treated by supervoltage irradiation following decompressive-laminectomy for his primary spinal cord neoplasm.

He probably received average dose of (4500) rads to a limited segment of his duodenum, within the six weeks. He developed this complication nine months after the completion of treatment. The dose-time-volume factors are considcred sufficient enough to produce such complications, however, there were apparent contributory factors such as unusual duodenal fixation and duodeno-jejunal ligament foreshortening.