Radiation Therapy Compared With Chemotherapy in Treating Patients With Stage I Testicular Cancer

Overview

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. It is not yet known whether chemotherapy is more effective than radiation therapy for testicular cancer. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of carboplatin with that of radiation therapy in treating patients who have stage I testicular cancer.

OBJECTIVES: I. Compare relapse rates in patients with stage I testicular seminoma treated with adjuvant radiotherapy vs carboplatin. II. Compare quality of life of patients before and after treatment with these regimens. III. Compare the acute and intermediate (1-2 year) side effects of these regimens in these patients. IV. Determine the incidence of late side effects (such as bowel dysfunction) of treatment and second malignancies in these patients. OUTLINE: This is a randomized study. Patients are randomized to 1 of 2 treatment arms. Arm I: Patients receive a single dose of carboplatin IV. Arm II: Patients undergo radiotherapy once daily, 5 days a week. Patients are followed every 3 months for 1 year, every 4 months for 1 year, every 6 months for 1 year, and then annually thereafter. PROJECTED ACCRUAL: Approximately 800 patients will be accrued for this study within 4 years.

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Eligibility

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