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Radiation Therapy in Preventing Central Nervous System (CNS) Metastases in Patients With Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

A Phase III Comparison Of Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation (PCI) Versus Observation In Patients With Locally Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Status
Completed
Phases
Phase 3
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT00048997
Enrollment
356
Registered
2003-01-27
Start date
2002-09-30
Completion date
2016-12-31
Last updated
2018-06-08

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

Conditions

Lung Cancer

Keywords

stage IIIA non-small cell lung cancer, stage IIIB non-small cell lung cancer

Brief summary

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. It is not yet known if giving radiation therapy to the head is effective in preventing CNS metastases in patients who have stage III non-small cell lung cancer. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is studying how well radiation therapy to the head works in preventing CNS metastases in patients who have been previously treated for stage III non-small cell lung cancer.

Detailed description

OBJECTIVES: * Determine whether prophylactic cranial irradiation improves survival after effective locoregional/systemic therapy in patients with stage IIIA or IIIB non-small cell lung cancer. * Determine the neuropsychologic impact of this therapy in these patients. * Assess quality of life of patients receiving this therapy. * Determine the impact of this therapy on the incidence of CNS metastases in these patients. OUTLINE: This is a randomized, multicenter study. Patients are stratified according to disease stage (IIIA vs IIIB), histology (non-squamous cell vs squamous cell), and prior surgery (yes vs no). Patients are randomized to 1 of 2 treatment arms. * Arm I: Patients undergo prophylactic cranial irradiation 5 days a week for 3 weeks. * Arm II: Patients undergo observation. Patients are followed 3 months during the first year, every 6 months for 2-3 years and then annually thereafter. Quality of life is assessed at baseline and at months 6, 12, 24, 36, and 48. PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 1,058 patients (529 per treatment arm) will be accrued for this study within 36 months.

Interventions

RADIATIONRadiation therapy

PCI is given to the whole brain in a dose of 2 Gy per fraction, 5 days per week, for 3 weeks for a total dose of 30 Gy.

OTHERObservation

Sponsors

National Cancer Institute (NCI)
CollaboratorNIH
Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group
CollaboratorNETWORK
Radiation Therapy Oncology Group
Lead SponsorNETWORK

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS: * Diagnosis of stage IIIA or IIIB non-small cell lung cancer * Complete response, partial response, or stable disease after definitive locoregional therapy (with surgery and/or radiation therapy, with or without chemotherapy (chemotherapy alone does not constitute definitive therapy)) * No more than 16 weeks since prior therapy * No progressive disease * No extracranial distant metastatic disease * No suspicion of CNS metastases by MRI or CT scan PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS: Age * 18 and over Performance status * Not specified Life expectancy * Not specified Hematopoietic * Not specified Hepatic * Not specified Renal * Not specified Other * No other malignancy within the past 3 years except nonmelanoma skin cancer * Not pregnant or nursing * Negative pregnancy test * Fertile patients must use effective contraception PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY: Biologic therapy * No concurrent anticancer biologic therapy Chemotherapy * See Disease Characteristics * No concurrent anticancer cytotoxic chemotherapy Endocrine therapy * Not specified Radiotherapy * See Disease Characteristics * No prior cranial irradiation Surgery * See Disease Characteristics Other * Recovered from all prior therapies * No concurrent enrollment on any other phase III study that has progression-free, disease-free, or overall survival as an endpoint

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Overall SurvivalFrom randomization to last follow-up. Analysis occurred after all patients had been on study for at least 12 months. Maximum follow-up at time of analysis was 96 months.Survival time is defined as time from randomization to date of death from any cause and is estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method. Patients last known to be alive are censored at the date of last contact. This analysis was planned to occur when all patients had been potentially followed for at least 12 months.

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test - Revised (HVLT-R) Delayed Recall Score at One YearBaseline and one year post study entryThe HVLT-R assesses verbal learning and memory. It incorporates 6 different forms to mitigate practice effects of repeated administrations. Each form includes 12 nouns (targets) with 4 words drawn from 3 semantic categories, which differ across the 6 forms. The delayed recall part of the test involves memorizing a list of 12 targets and recalling them after a 20-minute delay. The raw score is derived by summing the number of targets correctly recalled and ranges from 0 to 12 with a higher score indicating better functioning. A patient was classified with deterioration if there was a statistically significant decrease in score from baseline to one year as determined by the method of reliable change index.
Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Global Health Status From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core-30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at One YearBaseline and one year from randomizationThe EORTC QLQ is an integrated system for assessing the health-related quality of life (QOL) of cancer patients participating in international clinical trials. The QLQ Core-30 (QLQ-C30 ) is a 30-item self-report questionnaire that has patients rate the items on a 4-point scale, with 1 not at all to 4 very much and is composed of both multi-item scales and single-item measures, including 5 functional scales (physical, role, emotional, cognitive, social), 3 symptom scales (fatigue, nausea and vomiting, pain), a global health status, and 6 single items (dyspnea, insomnia, appetite loss, constipation, diarrhea, financial difficulties). The raw score is calculated as the mean of component items. This score is then standardized such that all of the scales and single-item measures range in score from 0-100. A high score for the global health status represents a high QOL. An increase from baseline to one year by \>= 10 points was considered deterioration.
Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Cognitive Functioning From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core-30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at One YearBaseline and one year from randomizationThe EORTC QLQ is an integrated system for assessing the health-related quality of life (QOL) of cancer patients participating in international clinical trials. The QLQ Core-30 (QLQ-C30 ) is a 30-item self-report questionnaire that has patients rate the items on a 4-point scale, with 1 not at all to 4 very much and is composed of both multi-item scales and single-item measures, including 5 functional scales (physical, role, emotional, cognitive, social), 3 symptom scales (fatigue, nausea and vomiting, pain), a global health status, and 6 single items (dyspnea, insomnia, appetite loss, constipation, diarrhea, financial difficulties). The raw score is calculated as the mean of component items. This score is then standardized such that all of the scales and single-item measures range in score from 0-100. A high score for a functional status represents a high QOL. An increase from baseline to one year by \>= 10 points was considered deterioration.
Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test - Revised (HVLT-R) Recall Score at One YearBaseline and one year post study entryThe HVLT-R assesses verbal learning and memory. It incorporates 6 different forms to mitigate practice effects of repeated administrations. Each form includes 12 nouns (targets) with 4 words drawn from 3 semantic categories, which differ across the 6 forms. The recall part of the test involves memorizing a list of 12 targets for 3 consecutive trials for immediate recall. The raw score is derived by summing the number of targets correctly recalled and ranges from 0 to 36 with a higher score indicating better functioning. A patient was classified with deterioration if there was a statistically significant decrease in score from baseline to one year as determined by the method of reliable change index.
Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Future Uncertainty From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Brain-20 (EORTC QLQ-B20) at One YearBaseline and one year from randomizationThe EORTC QLQ-B20 is a 20-item self-report that assesses 11 symptom scales/items such as future uncertainty, visual disorder, motor dysfunction, and communication deficit. Items are presented as questions on a scale ranging from 1 = not at all to 4 = very much. It is meant for use among brain cancer patients varying in disease stage and treatment modality (i.e. surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, etc.) and should always be complemented by the QLQ-C30. The raw score is calculated as the mean of component items. This score is then standardized such that all of the scales and single-item measures range in score from 0 to 100. A high score for a symptom scale/item represents a high level of symptomatology/problems. An increase from baseline to one year by \>= 10 points was considered deterioration.
Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Communications Deficit From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Brain-20 (EORTC QLQ-B20) at One YearBaseline and one year from randomizationThe EORTC QLQ-B20 is a 20-item self-report that assesses 11 symptom scales/items such as future uncertainty, visual disorder, motor dysfunction, and communication deficit. Items are presented as questions on a scale ranging from 1 = not at all to 4 = very much. It is meant for use among brain cancer patients varying in disease stage and treatment modality (i.e. surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, etc.) and should always be complemented by the QLQ-C30. The raw score is calculated as the mean of component items. This score is then standardized such that all of the scales and single-item measures range in score from 0 to 100. A high score for a symptom scale/item represents a high level of symptomatology/problems. An increase from baseline to one year by \>= 10 points was considered deterioration.
Number of Subjects With Central Nervous System (CNS) Metastases in the First YearFrom randomization to one year (Scans given at 6 and 12 months and additionally at other times within the time frame if clinically indicated.)The presence of metastases were determined by computerized tomography (CT) of the brain with and without contrast or by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain with and without gadolinium, using the same method that was done prior to study entry.
Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Fatigue From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core-30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at One YearBaseline and one year from randomizationThe EORTC QLQ is an integrated system for assessing the health-related quality of life (QOL) of cancer patients participating in international clinical trials. The QLQ Core-30 (QLQ-C30 ) is a 30-item self-report questionnaire that has patients rate the items on a 4-point scale, with 1 not at all to 4 very much and is composed of both multi-item scales and single-item measures, including 5 functional scales (physical, role, emotional, cognitive, social), 3 symptom scales (fatigue, nausea and vomiting, pain), a global health status, and 6 single items (dyspnea, insomnia, appetite loss, constipation, diarrhea, financial difficulties). The raw score is calculated as the mean of component items. This score is then standardized such that all of the scales and single-item measures range in score from 0-100. A high score for a symptom scale/item represents a high level of symptomatology/problems. An increase from baseline to one year by \>= 10 points was considered deterioration.

Countries

United States

Participant flow

Participants by arm

ArmCount
Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation (PCI)
PCI is given to the whole brain in a dose of 2 Gy per fraction, 5 days per week, for 3 weeks for a total dose of 30 Gy.
163
Observation
Observation.
177
Total340

Withdrawals & dropouts

PeriodReasonFG000FG001
Overall StudyProtocol Violation72
Overall StudyWithdrawal by Subject61

Baseline characteristics

CharacteristicProphylactic Cranial Irradiation (PCI)ObservationTotal
Age, Continuous62 years60 years61 years
Sex: Female, Male
Female
60 Participants67 Participants127 Participants
Sex: Female, Male
Male
103 Participants110 Participants213 Participants

Adverse events

Event typeEG000
affected / at risk
deaths
Total, all-cause mortality
— / —
other
Total, other adverse events
83 / 163
serious
Total, serious adverse events
5 / 163

Outcome results

Primary

Overall Survival

Survival time is defined as time from randomization to date of death from any cause and is estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method. Patients last known to be alive are censored at the date of last contact. This analysis was planned to occur when all patients had been potentially followed for at least 12 months.

Time frame: From randomization to last follow-up. Analysis occurred after all patients had been on study for at least 12 months. Maximum follow-up at time of analysis was 96 months.

Population: All eligible patients

ArmMeasureValue (MEDIAN)
Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation (PCI)Overall Survival28.5 months
ObservationOverall Survival25.3 months
Comparison: This study was designed to detect a 20% relative improvement in hazard rate: null hypothesis (observation): MST (median survival time) = 23.5 mo.; alternative hypothesis (PCI): MST= 29.4 mo. A one-sided log-rank test at a significance level of 0.025 would have 80% power to detect this difference with a sample size of 1007 patients (527 deaths were required for the final analysis).p-value: 0.285395% CI: [0.84, 1.38]Log Rank
Secondary

Number of Subjects With Central Nervous System (CNS) Metastases in the First Year

The presence of metastases were determined by computerized tomography (CT) of the brain with and without contrast or by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain with and without gadolinium, using the same method that was done prior to study entry.

Time frame: From randomization to one year (Scans given at 6 and 12 months and additionally at other times within the time frame if clinically indicated.)

Population: Eligible patients

ArmMeasureValue (COUNT_OF_PARTICIPANTS)
Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation (PCI)Number of Subjects With Central Nervous System (CNS) Metastases in the First Year15 Participants
ObservationNumber of Subjects With Central Nervous System (CNS) Metastases in the First Year36 Participants
Comparison: The development of CNS metastases was assessed using logistic regression modeling comparing presence vs. absence of brain metastases at 1 year.p-value: 0.00595% CI: [1.32, 4.8]Regression, Logistic
Secondary

Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Cognitive Functioning From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core-30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at One Year

The EORTC QLQ is an integrated system for assessing the health-related quality of life (QOL) of cancer patients participating in international clinical trials. The QLQ Core-30 (QLQ-C30 ) is a 30-item self-report questionnaire that has patients rate the items on a 4-point scale, with 1 not at all to 4 very much and is composed of both multi-item scales and single-item measures, including 5 functional scales (physical, role, emotional, cognitive, social), 3 symptom scales (fatigue, nausea and vomiting, pain), a global health status, and 6 single items (dyspnea, insomnia, appetite loss, constipation, diarrhea, financial difficulties). The raw score is calculated as the mean of component items. This score is then standardized such that all of the scales and single-item measures range in score from 0-100. A high score for a functional status represents a high QOL. An increase from baseline to one year by \>= 10 points was considered deterioration.

Time frame: Baseline and one year from randomization

Population: All eligible patients with a baseline and 12 month EORTC QLQ-C30 cognitive functioning score

ArmMeasureValue (NUMBER)
Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation (PCI)Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Cognitive Functioning From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core-30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at One Year41 percentage of participants
ObservationPercentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Cognitive Functioning From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core-30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at One Year25 percentage of participants
p-value: 0.14Z-test, 2-sided
Secondary

Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Communications Deficit From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Brain-20 (EORTC QLQ-B20) at One Year

The EORTC QLQ-B20 is a 20-item self-report that assesses 11 symptom scales/items such as future uncertainty, visual disorder, motor dysfunction, and communication deficit. Items are presented as questions on a scale ranging from 1 = not at all to 4 = very much. It is meant for use among brain cancer patients varying in disease stage and treatment modality (i.e. surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, etc.) and should always be complemented by the QLQ-C30. The raw score is calculated as the mean of component items. This score is then standardized such that all of the scales and single-item measures range in score from 0 to 100. A high score for a symptom scale/item represents a high level of symptomatology/problems. An increase from baseline to one year by \>= 10 points was considered deterioration.

Time frame: Baseline and one year from randomization

Population: All eligible patients with a baseline and 12 month EORTC QLQ-B20 communications deficit score

ArmMeasureValue (NUMBER)
Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation (PCI)Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Communications Deficit From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Brain-20 (EORTC QLQ-B20) at One Year39 percentage of participants
ObservationPercentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Communications Deficit From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Brain-20 (EORTC QLQ-B20) at One Year23 percentage of participants
p-value: 0.11Other [Z-test, 2-sided]
Secondary

Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Fatigue From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core-30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at One Year

The EORTC QLQ is an integrated system for assessing the health-related quality of life (QOL) of cancer patients participating in international clinical trials. The QLQ Core-30 (QLQ-C30 ) is a 30-item self-report questionnaire that has patients rate the items on a 4-point scale, with 1 not at all to 4 very much and is composed of both multi-item scales and single-item measures, including 5 functional scales (physical, role, emotional, cognitive, social), 3 symptom scales (fatigue, nausea and vomiting, pain), a global health status, and 6 single items (dyspnea, insomnia, appetite loss, constipation, diarrhea, financial difficulties). The raw score is calculated as the mean of component items. This score is then standardized such that all of the scales and single-item measures range in score from 0-100. A high score for a symptom scale/item represents a high level of symptomatology/problems. An increase from baseline to one year by \>= 10 points was considered deterioration.

Time frame: Baseline and one year from randomization

Population: All eligible patients with a baseline and 12 month EORTC QLQ-C30 cognitive fatigue score

ArmMeasureValue (NUMBER)
Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation (PCI)Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Fatigue From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core-30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at One Year34 percentage of participants
ObservationPercentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Fatigue From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core-30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at One Year28 percentage of participants
p-value: 0.52Z-test, 2-sided
Secondary

Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Future Uncertainty From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Brain-20 (EORTC QLQ-B20) at One Year

The EORTC QLQ-B20 is a 20-item self-report that assesses 11 symptom scales/items such as future uncertainty, visual disorder, motor dysfunction, and communication deficit. Items are presented as questions on a scale ranging from 1 = not at all to 4 = very much. It is meant for use among brain cancer patients varying in disease stage and treatment modality (i.e. surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, etc.) and should always be complemented by the QLQ-C30. The raw score is calculated as the mean of component items. This score is then standardized such that all of the scales and single-item measures range in score from 0 to 100. A high score for a symptom scale/item represents a high level of symptomatology/problems. An increase from baseline to one year by \>= 10 points was considered deterioration.

Time frame: Baseline and one year from randomization

Population: All eligible patients with a baseline and 12 month EORTC QLQ-B20 future uncertainty score

ArmMeasureValue (NUMBER)
Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation (PCI)Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Future Uncertainty From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Brain-20 (EORTC QLQ-B20) at One Year16 percentage of participants
ObservationPercentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Future Uncertainty From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Brain-20 (EORTC QLQ-B20) at One Year21 percentage of participants
p-value: 0.51Z-test, 2-sided
Secondary

Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Global Health Status From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core-30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at One Year

The EORTC QLQ is an integrated system for assessing the health-related quality of life (QOL) of cancer patients participating in international clinical trials. The QLQ Core-30 (QLQ-C30 ) is a 30-item self-report questionnaire that has patients rate the items on a 4-point scale, with 1 not at all to 4 very much and is composed of both multi-item scales and single-item measures, including 5 functional scales (physical, role, emotional, cognitive, social), 3 symptom scales (fatigue, nausea and vomiting, pain), a global health status, and 6 single items (dyspnea, insomnia, appetite loss, constipation, diarrhea, financial difficulties). The raw score is calculated as the mean of component items. This score is then standardized such that all of the scales and single-item measures range in score from 0-100. A high score for the global health status represents a high QOL. An increase from baseline to one year by \>= 10 points was considered deterioration.

Time frame: Baseline and one year from randomization

Population: All eligible patients with a baseline and 12 month EORTC QLQ-C30 global health status score

ArmMeasureValue (NUMBER)
Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation (PCI)Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Global Health Status From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core-30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at One Year22 percentage of participants
ObservationPercentage of Subjects With Deterioration in Global Health Status From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core-30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at One Year34 percentage of participants
p-value: 0.2Z-test, 2-sided
Secondary

Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test - Revised (HVLT-R) Delayed Recall Score at One Year

The HVLT-R assesses verbal learning and memory. It incorporates 6 different forms to mitigate practice effects of repeated administrations. Each form includes 12 nouns (targets) with 4 words drawn from 3 semantic categories, which differ across the 6 forms. The delayed recall part of the test involves memorizing a list of 12 targets and recalling them after a 20-minute delay. The raw score is derived by summing the number of targets correctly recalled and ranges from 0 to 12 with a higher score indicating better functioning. A patient was classified with deterioration if there was a statistically significant decrease in score from baseline to one year as determined by the method of reliable change index.

Time frame: Baseline and one year post study entry

Population: All eligible patients with a baseline and 12 month HVLT-R assessment.

ArmMeasureValue (NUMBER)
Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation (PCI)Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test - Revised (HVLT-R) Delayed Recall Score at One Year32 percentage of participants
ObservationPercentage of Subjects With Deterioration in the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test - Revised (HVLT-R) Delayed Recall Score at One Year5 percentage of participants
p-value: 0.008Z-test, 2-sided
Secondary

Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test - Revised (HVLT-R) Recall Score at One Year

The HVLT-R assesses verbal learning and memory. It incorporates 6 different forms to mitigate practice effects of repeated administrations. Each form includes 12 nouns (targets) with 4 words drawn from 3 semantic categories, which differ across the 6 forms. The recall part of the test involves memorizing a list of 12 targets for 3 consecutive trials for immediate recall. The raw score is derived by summing the number of targets correctly recalled and ranges from 0 to 36 with a higher score indicating better functioning. A patient was classified with deterioration if there was a statistically significant decrease in score from baseline to one year as determined by the method of reliable change index.

Time frame: Baseline and one year post study entry

Population: All eligible patients with a baseline and 12 month HVLT-R assessment.

ArmMeasureValue (NUMBER)
Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation (PCI)Percentage of Subjects With Deterioration in the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test - Revised (HVLT-R) Recall Score at One Year26 percentage of participants
ObservationPercentage of Subjects With Deterioration in the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test - Revised (HVLT-R) Recall Score at One Year7 percentage of participants
p-value: 0.01Z-test, 2-sided

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 21, 2026