A study to reduce the effects of radiotherapy to the heart
Please note - this trial is no longer recruiting patients. We hope to add results when they are available.
Cancer type:
Lung cancer
Non small cell lung cancer
Small cell lung cancer
Status:
Closed
Phase:
Other
This study is looking at how having radiotherapy for lung cancer affects the heart and how to reduce the effects of radiotherapy on the heart.
More about this trial
One of the treatments for lung cancer is radiotherapy. This is given either by itself or with chemotherapy (chemoradiotherapy)
When you have radiotherapy some of the radiation goes to the healthy tissue surrounding the cancer. Your doctors and radiographers carefully create a plan for your radiotherapy treatment to try and minimise how much healthy tissue is affected.
The position of the heart close to the lungs means that radiotherapy treatment to the lungs can affect the heart. Researchers are uncertain which parts of the heart are sensitive to radiotherapy. And just how much the radiotherapy affects the heart.
In this study researchers want to take blood samples and scans to find out how radiotherapy affects the heart and which parts are affected.
They hope that by doing this study, they can develop a way of planning radiotherapy to the chest to spare the heart. And help increase the length of time people with lung cancer live after having radiotherapy.
Please note: Taking part in this study won’t benefit you directly but will possibly benefit people in the future who have radiotherapy for their lung cancer.
Who can enter
The following bullet points list the entry conditions for this study. Talk to your doctor or the study team if you are unsure about any of these. They will be able to advise you.
Who can take part
You may be able to join this study if are going to The Christie, Manchester or Leeds Cancer Centre and all of the following apply. You:
- have lung cancer
- are suitable to have radiotherapy, including chemoradiotherapy, with the aim to cure
- are at least 18 years old
Who can’t take part
You cannot join this study if your lung cancer has spread (stage 4).
Trial design
The study team need 200 people to join.
You give 3 blood samples:
- before your radiotherapy starts
- straight after you finish your course of radiotherapy
- 4 months after you finished your radiotherapy
The study team will ask 50 people from The Christie, Manchester to have scans of their heart. The scans include:
- ultrasound of the heart (ECHO)
- CT scan of the heart (angiogram)
- ECG
You have these at the Wythenshawe hospital, South Manchester:
- before starting radiotherapy
- 4 months after finishing radiotherapy
Hospital visits
You see the doctor before you start radiotherapy:
- for a physical examination
- to see if you have had any heart problems in the past
- to see if you are taking any heart medication
- to assess your risk of heart problems in the future
You give the blood samples when you go to the hospital for an appointment.
For the 50 people who are having the scans, you have 2 extra hospitals visits to the Wythenshawe hospital, South Manchester. Where possible all 3 scans are taken on the same day.
Side effects
You might have a bruise from the blood tests.
Recruitment start:
Recruitment end:
How to join a clinical trial
Please note: In order to join a trial you will need to discuss it with your doctor, unless otherwise specified.
Please note - unless we state otherwise in the summary, you need to talk to your doctor about joining a trial.
Chief Investigator
Professor Corinne Faivre-Finn
Dr Kevin Franks
Supported by
University of Manchester
University of Leeds
Yorkshire Cancer Research
NIHR Manchester Biomedical Research Centre
If you have questions about the trial please contact our cancer information nurses
Freephone 0808 800 4040
Last review date
CRUK internal database number:
16266
Please note - unless we state otherwise in the summary, you need to talk to your doctor about joining a trial.
