The UF Department of Radiation Oncology has opened a new clinical trial aimed at testing whether the use of brain scans alone – instead of brain scans plus preventive brain radiation – affects lifespan in patients with small cell lung cancer.
Sponsored by the Southwest Oncology Group and made possible through a collaboration with the National Cancer Institute, this Phase III trial will target patients with extensive-stage small cell carcinoma, limited-stage small cell carcinoma, and small cell carcinoma of the lung.
“The standard of care for patients with small cell lung cancer is prophylactic cranial irradiation, or PCI, which has been shown in older trials to improve survival and reduce the risk of brain metastases in these patients,” said Professor Anamaria Yeung, M.D., UF Site Principal Investigator. “However, the downside to PCI is that it has a significant risk of causing cognitive decline. The Maverick study is important because it is the first multi-institutional study comparing PCI to MRI surveillance in both limited and extensive stage patients, and will hopefully clarify whether PCI actually improves outcomes in the era of modern MRI surveillance.”
Patients participating in the study will be randomized to one of two “arms,” or treatment groups, with some patients undergoing magnetic resonance imaging and prophylactic cranial irradiation.
For more information, contact Maverick Study Coordinator Ashton Monismith, RN, BSN, CCRP, Clinical Research Coordinator III, Department of Radiation Oncology, at 352-265-8851.
