
Around 1 in 5 people diagnosed with cancer in the UK take part in a clinical trial.
This trial compared 2 different ways of treating a build up of fluid around the lung caused by cancer.
This trial closed in 2016 and these final results were published in 2018.
In some people who have cancer, fluid collects between the sheets of tissue covering the outside of the lung and the inside of the chest wall. These sheets of tissue are called the pleura. The collection of fluid is called a pleural effusion.
To treat a pleural effusion, doctors put a tube into your chest to drain away the fluid. They can also do a procedure called talc pleurodesis. This involves putting sterile talc down the tube into the space between the pleura. This makes them stick together, which can stop the fluid building up again.
An alternative way of treating a pleural effusion is to have a different type of tube called an indwelling pleural catheter (IPC). This can stay in your chest for a while. And it is used to drain off fluid when you are at home.
Half the people taking part in this trial had sterile talc through their IPC.
The other half had sterile salt water () through their IPC. Sterile salt water was used as it would cause no harm.
The aim of the trial was to see if having sterile talc through an IPC was better than having an IPC alone.
The people taking part didn’t know if they had the sterile talc or sterile salt water through their IPC.
Method
Everyone had a chest x-ray before having the IPC put in. This was to see how much fluid was there to start with.
Then the fluid was drained off at home for the next week. After this the sterile talc or sterile salt water was put in through their IPC.
Their IPC was then drained the following day by the district nurses and at least twice a week (or more if necessary) after this.
Results
The team looked at how much fluid was drained at each visit. Another chest x-ray was taken at each visit.
The pleurodesis procedure was successful if both of the following happened:
Please note: In order to join a trial you will need to discuss it with your doctor, unless otherwise specified.
Dr Nick Maskell
NIHR Clinical Research Network: Cancer
North Bristol NHS Trust
Beckton Dickinson and Company (BD)
Freephone 0808 800 4040
Around 1 in 5 people diagnosed with cancer in the UK take part in a clinical trial.