Structured investigation of the benefit of clinical photon-counting computed tomography in oncologic imaging

Status

Recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Observational

Source

DRKS

Registry ID

DRKS00036816

Enrollment

2000

Registered

2025-06-17

Start date

2025-07-28

Completion date

Unknown

Last updated

2025-10-06

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Cancer in adults C00-C79

Interventions

Group 1: Patients receiving clinically indicated photon-counting computed tomography (PCCT) for oncological indications as part of their routine clinical care. PCCT examinations are performed accordin

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

All

Age

18 Years to No maximum

Inclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria: - Clinically indicated photon-counting computed tomography (PCCT) scan as part of routine clinical care at the Department of Radiology, DKFZ. - Existing, valid informed consent from the patient for the scientific database (wDB) of the DKFZ, allowing the use of clinical and imaging data for research purposes.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion criteria: - Missing, invalid, or withdrawn informed consent from the patient for the scientific database (wDB) of the DKFZ. - Individuals without a clinical indication for an oncological CT examination (e.g., healthy volunteers). - Persons unable to provide informed consent.

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame
Quantitative improvement in image quality with photon-counting CT compared to (historical data from) conventional CT systems, assessed at equivalent radiation dose or under dose reduction conditions. Evaluation is based on relevant metrics such as signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) to analyze image information, image sharpness, and dose-dependent noise characteristics.	—

Secondary

Measure	Time frame
- Diagnostic accuracy: Assessment of tumor lesion detection rate and the ability to differentiate various tissue types based on clinical reference standards. - Utility of spectral information: Investigation of the effectiveness of energy-selective analysis methods for specific questions such as contrast agent distribution/concentration, tissue characterization, or detection of small lesions. - Application in advanced analysis methods: Integration of the acquired image data into advanced analyses such as machine or deep learning, radiomic models, or further statistical methods to uncover relationships between image features and clinical parameters. - Aspects of therapy planning and follow-up: Exploration of whether photon-counting CT provides information relevant for precise target definition in radiation therapy or for differentiated therapy monitoring (e.g., distinguishing between tumor progression and pseudoprogression).	—

Measure

Time frame

- Diagnostic accuracy: Assessment of tumor lesion detection rate and the ability to differentiate various tissue types based on clinical reference standards. - Utility of spectral information: Investigation of the effectiveness of energy-selective analysis methods for specific questions such as contrast agent distribution/concentration, tissue characterization, or detection of small lesions. - Application in advanced analysis methods: Integration of the acquired image data into advanced analyses such as machine or deep learning, radiomic models, or further statistical methods to uncover relationships between image features and clinical parameters. - Aspects of therapy planning and follow-up: Exploration of whether photon-counting CT provides information relevant for precise target definition in radiation therapy or for differentiated therapy monitoring (e.g., distinguishing between tumor progression and pseudoprogression).

—

Countries

Germany

Contacts

Public ContactLukas Thomas Rotkopf

Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum Heidelberg

l.rotkopf@dkfz.de0049 6221 42 2525

Outcome results

None listed

Source: DRKS (via WHO ICTRP) · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026