This is a prospective clinical trial designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of hypofractionated regional nodal irradiation in breast cancer patients. After enrollment, participants will be stratified into 2 Groups based on the extent of axillary surgery. Participants will complete activities and assessments at baseline, and after completion of treatment at 1-2 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 2 year, and 3 years following completion of treatment.
This is a prospective clinical trial designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of hypofractionated regional nodal irradiation in breast cancer patients. Participants are stratified into 2 Groups based on the extent of axillary surgery after enrollment. Group 1: sentinel lymph node procedure with or without select removal of clipped (clinically involved) lymph nodes. Group 2: axillary lymph node dissection (with or without sentinel lymph node procedure) or patients who have more than 5 sentinel lymph nodes removed will be stratified into group 2. Participants will complete activities and assessments at baseline, and after completion of treatment at 1-2 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 2 year, and 3 years following completion of treatment. At baseline consultations, history and physical, lymphedema assessment, toxicity assessment, photographs (optional), patient-reported outcome questionnaire and radiation simulation will be completed. Hypofractionated radiation therapy will be completed weekly through the end of treatment with toxicity assessments. At the 1-2 week follow up, toxicity assessment, photographs (optional) and the patient-reported outcome questionnaire will be completed. At the 3 month, 6 month, 1 year, 2 year and 3 year follow-ups a lymphedema assessment, toxicity assessment, photographs (optional), patient-reported outcome questionnaire and follow up examination will be completed. All patients will receive a dose of 42.56 Gy in 16 daily fractions to the whole breast or chest wall and regional lymph nodes. A boost dose of 10 or 12.5 Gy in 4 or 5 daily fractions of 2.5 Gy, respectively, will be administered to either the lumpectomy cavity or mastectomy scar, as appropriate. Critical organs will be contoured into the treatment planning such as the heart, left anterior descending artery, ipsilateral lung. Patients may receive neoadjuvant or adjuvant systemic treatment on this trial. In general, the patient should receive systemic treatment according to the current standard of care at the time of enrollment, taking into account the discretion of the treating medical oncologist. Expected radiation-related acute adverse events (i.e., those experienced within the first 6 months following treatment) are similar to those with conventionally fractionated radiotherapy and include fatigue and tenderness, pruritus, hyperpigmentation, hypopigmentation, dry desquamation, and moist desquamation of the skin. Potential late effects of radiation include arm lymphedema, shoulder stiffness, fibrosis of normal tissue, telangiectasia, hyperpigmentation, or hypopigmentation of the skin, brachial plexopathy, myositis, rib fracture, pneumonitis, second malignancy, or cardiomyopathy. The participants will be monitored for adverse events during radiotherapy and following radiotherapy.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
56
All patients will receive a dose of 42.56 Gy in 16 daily fractions to the whole breast or chest wall and regional lymph nodes. A boost dose of 10 or 12.5 Gy in 4 or 5 daily fractions of 2.5 Gy, respectively, will be administered to either the lumpectomy cavity or mastectomy scar, as appropriate.
Corewell Health Dearborn Hospital
Dearborn, Michigan, United States
Corewell Health William Beaumont University Hospital
Royal Oak, Michigan, United States
Corewell Health Beaumont Troy Hospital
Troy, Michigan, United States
Number of participants with chronic arm lymphedema
Chronic arm lymphedema will be assessed at the 3 year follow up. Determination of chronic lymphedema will be based on measurements of arm circumference prior to radiation simulation and through the 3 year follow up visit. Clinically significant lymphedema is defined as a 10% or greater difference in ipsilateral arm, forearm, or both, compared to the contralateral side.
Time frame: 3 years post radiation therapy
Number of participants with recurrence of cancer
Recurrence will be determined based on the physical exam, imaging and routine follow up visits. This includes local recurrence (ipsilateral breast or chest wall tumor recurrence), regional recurrence (regional lymph nodes, including the ipsilateral axilla (levels 1-3), supraclavicular fossa, or internal mammary chain), locoregional recurrence (local or regional recurrence), and distant metastasis ( outside the ipsilateral breast or ipsilateral regional lymph nodes).
Time frame: 3 years post radiation therapy
Progress-free survival (months)
This is defined as the number of months participants experienced no locoregional recurrence or distant metastasis from completion date of radiation therapy until the date of progression. The date of progression will be defined as the date of initial suspicion for progression by physical exam or imaging studies.
Time frame: 3 years
Overall survival (months)
This is defined as the number of months participants survived from completion date of radiation therapy until the date of death. If a participant is alive, the participant censored at the date of last documentation of the patient being alive.
Time frame: 3 years
Number acute toxicities
Number of acute toxicities associated with radiation experienced by participants based on the follow-up assessments at 1-2 weeks, 3 months, 6 months following radiation therapy completion
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Time frame: 6 months
Number of chronic toxicities
Number of chronic toxicities associated with radiation experienced by participants based on the follow-up assessments completed at 2 weeks, 3 months, 6 months and 12 months following radiation therapy
Time frame: 1 year
Cosmetic Outcome
This will be assessment for participants with an intact breast at baseline and at each follow up visit using the Harvard Breast Cosmesis scale. This is a 4-point Likert scale (poor - treated breast seriously distorted, Fair - treated breast clearly difference from untreated breast but not seriously distorted, Good - treated breast slightly different from untreated breast, Excellent - treated breast nearly identical to untreated breast). Cosmetic outcome will be assessed at 1-2 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, 3 years.
Time frame: 3 years
Lymphedema requiring intervention
The number of participants who experience lymphedema requiring intervention such as use of a compression sleeve. This will be determined based on completed follow up assessments.
Time frame: 3 years
Participant Perception of Quality of Life
Quality of Life will be assessment using the Cancer Therapy - Breast Cancer (FACT-B) questionnaire. Participants will rate 37 statements on a scale of 0-4 (0 - not at all, 1 - a little bit, 2 - somewhat, 3 - quite a bit, 4 - very much). Negatively worded items are recoded so that a higher score indicates a better quality of life for all items. The FACT-B total score is the sum of scores of all five subscales, ranging from 0 (worst quality of life) to 148 (best quality of life).
Time frame: 3 years