Abstract
BACKGROUND: Stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) is evolving as treatment modality for kidney cancer alongside increased recognition of the importance of sex as a biological variable (SABV) policy in generating deeper insights. PURPOSE: This review aimed to assess the representation of male and female patients and the reporting of sex-specific outcomes in SBRT clinical studies for primary localised kidney cancer. METHODOLOGY: A database search with appropriate search terms was carried out on EMBASE, CINAHL, and Web of Science. Consideration of biological sex was assessed with the male: female ratio, reporting of sex-specific treatment outcomes, and inclusion of sex as a variable in univariate and/or multivariate analysis. Main findings :Twenty-two studies were included. Of 961 patients (with sex stated), 29.24 % were females, with a mean male to female ratio of 2.57 and standard deviation of 1.22 across the studies. There was no relationship between the year, region and study type, and the male to female ratio recorded (Chi-squared test, p = 0.099, 0.29, and 0.719 respectively). Only six studies were sex inclusive, with three reporting sex-based outcomes, and three including sex-specific analysis. Of these, only one study reported significant difference in survival. CONCLUSION: Supporting the integration of SABV will promote more equitable and biologically informed evidence for the use of SBRT in the management of kidney cancer.