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Veterans Affairs Lung Cancer Surgery Or Stereotactic Radiotherapy

CSP #2005 - Veterans Affairs Lung Cancer Surgery Or Stereotactic Radiotherapy Trial (VALOR)

Status
Recruiting
Phases
Unknown
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT02984761
Acronym
VALOR
Enrollment
670
Registered
2016-12-07
Start date
2017-04-13
Completion date
2034-03-31
Last updated
2026-02-19

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

Conditions

Lung Neoplasm

Keywords

Carcinoma, Non-Small Cell Lung, Respiratory Tract Neoplasms, Thoracic Neoplasms, Neoplasms by Site, Neoplasms, Lung Diseases, Respiratory Tract Diseases, Carcinoma, Bronchogenic, Bronchial Neoplasms, Radiosurgery, Radiotherapy, Radiotherapy, Image-Guided, Lung Neoplasms

Brief summary

Patients with stage I non-small cell lung cancer have been historically treated with surgery whenever they are fit for an operation. However, an alternative treatment known as stereotactic radiotherapy now appears to offer an equally effective alternative. Doctors believe both are good treatments and are therefore conducting this study to determine if one may be possibly better than the other.

Detailed description

The standard of care for stage I non-small cell lung cancer has historically been surgical resection in patients who are medically fit to tolerate an operation. Recent data now suggests that stereotactic radiotherapy may be a suitable alternative. This includes the results from a pooled analysis of two incomplete phase III studies that reported a 15% overall survival advantage with stereotactic radiotherapy at 3 years. While these data are promising, the median follow-up period was short, the results underpowered, and the findings were in contradiction to multiple retrospective studies that demonstrate the outcomes with surgery are likely equal or superior. Therefore, the herein trial aims to evaluate these two treatments in a prospective randomized fashion with a goal to compare the overall survival beyond 5 years. It has been designed to enroll patients who have a long life-expectancy, and are fit enough to tolerate an anatomic pulmonary resection with intraoperative lymph node sampling. This study is designed to open at Veterans Affairs medical centers with expertise in both treatments. The recruitment process includes shared decision making and multi-disciplinary evaluations with lung cancer specialists. Mandatory evaluations before randomization include tissue confirmation of NSCLC, staging with FDG-PET/CT, and biopsies of all hilar and/or mediastinal lymph nodes \>10mm that have a SUV \>2.5. Pre-randomization elective lymph node sampling is strongly encouraged, but not required. Following treatment, patients will be followed for a minimum of 5 years.

Interventions

RADIATIONStereotactic Radiotherapy

Stereotactic radiotherapy uses high doses of ionizing energy to treat cancer cells with image guidance. The treatment is delivered in an outpatient setting, and for purposes of this trial is delivered in 3-5 fractions.

PROCEDUREAnatomic Pulmonary Resection

An anatomic pulmonary resection is an oncologic procedure that dissects out an anatomically defined segment of the lung to remove all of the lung tissue around a lung tumor. It requires an operation with general anesthesia, with a short hospital stay. The procedure entails removal of lymph nodes inside the chest that might not be easily accessible without an operation.

Sponsors

VA Office of Research and Development
Lead SponsorFED

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

Inclusion Criteria for Screening * Age 18 or older * Any patient with a preliminary diagnosis of stage I Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC), whether pathologically proven by biopsy, or highly suspicious by radiographic imaging. \[Participants will ultimately need biopsy confirmation before enrolling\] * Primary tumor size less than or equal to 5 cm by CT (may include CT images from PET/CT) * Karnofsky performance status greater than or equal to 70 * Participant has willingness and ability to provided informed consent for participation Inclusion Criteria for Randomization * Biopsy proven non-small cell lung cancer * Participant's case reviewed at multidisciplinary conference * Tumor size less than or equal to 5cm (measured on the most recent CT images available, and may include PET/CT images) * Tumor is equal to or greater than 1.0cm from the trachea, esophagus, brachial plexus, 1st bifurcation of the proximal bronchial tree, or spinal cord (measured on the most recent CT images available, and may include PET/CT images). * Mandatory FDG-PET/CT within 60 days of the randomization date (note: FDG-PET/CT may need to be repeated prior to treatment if outside of this requirement) * Mandatory pathological assessment of any lymph nodes \>10mm with a SUV \>2.5 seen on FDG- PET/CT * Mandatory biopsy of any additional concerning lesions seen on FDG-PET/CT, to make better determination that the patient is not harboring metastatic disease or a secondary primary malignancy. * Pre-operative FEV1 greater than or equal to 40% of predicted value and pre-operative DLCO greater than or equal to 40% of predicted value. * Formally evaluated and documented by a local thoracic surgeon to be medically fit to undergo a complete anatomic pulmonary resection (wedge resection not allowed) * Formally evaluated and documented by a local radiation oncologist to be eligible to receive protocol-defined stereotactic radiotherapy * Participant willingness to be randomized

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Overall SurvivalFrom date of randomization through study completion, up to 10 yearsSurvival estimates will include death from any cause.

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Patient reported health-related quality of life5 yearsThe European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) and Lung Cancer (LC 13) survey instruments will assess patients' general state of physical, social/family, emotional and functional well-being.
Respiratory Function5 yearsThe St George's Respiratory Questionnaire will evaluate respiratory symptoms, activity limitations from breathlessness, and impact of respiratory function on social and psychological functioning.
Health State Utilities5 yearsThe EQ-5D-5L (EuroQOL-5D) survey will measure quality adjusted life years.
Lung cancer mortalityFrom date of randomization until date of death from any cause, assessed up to 10 years.Cause of death will be determined by an independent adjudication committee.
Tumor patterns of failure5 yearsPost-treatment surveillance imaging will evaluate patients every 6 months for local, regional, and/or distant disease control.

Countries

United States

Contacts

CONTACTDrew Moghanaki, MD MPH
Drew.Moghanaki@va.gov(804) 306-9045
CONTACTVicki L Skinner, RN
vicki.skinner@va.gov(894) 675-5105
STUDY_CHAIRDrew Moghanaki, MD MPH

VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, West Los Angeles, CA

STUDY_CHAIRDavid H Harpole, MD

Durham VA Medical Center, Durham, NC

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 20, 2026