Objective To investigate the current distribution of radiotherapy resources in Gansu Province, evaluate the equity of resource allocation, and provide a scientific basis for optimizing regional resource allocation. Methods A questionnaire survey was carried out to assess radiotherapy resources in medical institutions across Gansu Province, China. The equity of radiotherapy resource distribution and associated disparities were assessed using the Gini coefficient, Lorenz curve, and Theil index. Results A total of 23 medical institutions in Gansu Province provided radiotherapy services, comprising 39 radiotherapy devices and 438 professionals, of whom medical physicists accounted for 16.9%. The radiotherapy frequency was 0.47 cases per thousand population. The Gini coefficients for radiotherapy resource distribution ranged from 0.38 to 0.56 by population and from 0.52 to 0.70 by geography. The Theil index for radiotherapy resources ranged from 1.36 to 3.67. Conclusion Radiotherapy resources in Gansu Province were insufficient, and the capacity of radiotherapy service was suboptimal. The equity of radiotherapy resource allocation by geography was worse than that by population. Therefore, it is imperative to address the shortage of radiotherapy resources, strengthen the professional workforce, enhance the capacity radiotherapy service and resource utilization, optimize resource allocation, and promote regional equity in radiotherapy provision in Gansu Province.

Background and objective Cetuximab is a monoclonal antibody directed against epidermal growth fac-tor receptor. Emerging evidence showed improved effcacy with the addition of cetuximab to chemotherapy in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but the data in oriental population are limited. hTe aim of this study is to investigate the eff-cacy of cetuximab in combination with chemotherapy in Chinese patients with advanced NSCLC.Methods NSCLC patients receiving cetuximab in combination with chemotherapy in Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College were enrolled and retrospectively analyzed. Clinical characteristic, effcacy, outcome and toxicity data were analyzed.Results A total of 40 patients were enrolled into this study in which 29 were male, 36 with adenocarcinoma. In the 23 patients who had received palliative chemotherapy previously (with a median of 2 prior chemotherapy regimens), the median progression-free survival (PFS) atfer the last prior chemotherapy regimen was 2.3 months. For the overall population, 13 (32.5%) patients achieved partial response atfer cetuximab in combination with chemotherapy. Response rate were 52.9% (9/17) and 17.4% (4/23) in chemotherapy-naive patients and chemotherapy-treated patients, respectively (P=0.018). hTe median PFS was 4.8 months for the overall population. In chemotherapy-naive patients and chemotherapy-treated patients, the median PFS was 8.4 months and 4.1 months, respectively (P=0.062). hTe estimated median overall survival was 17.1 months. Toxicities were generally manageable and no treatment-related deaths occurred.Conclusion Cetuximab in addition to che-motherapy appears to be associated with promising effcacy and acceptable toxicity proifle in Chinese patients with advanced NSCLC. Further validation is needed.