Recruiting
Phase 2

Nodal vs. Elective

Sponsor:

University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

Code:

NCT06477692

Conditions

Head and Neck Cancer

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18 - 70+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Interventions

ENI using IMRT with or without chemotherapy

INRT

ENI

Study Details

Brief summary:

To determine the risk of solitary elective volume recurrence following involved nodal radiotherapy (INRT) versus elective nodal irradiation (ENI)

Conditions

Head and Neck Cancer

Study ID

NCT06477692

Start date

Nov 14, 2024

Status verified date

Apr, 2026

Completion date

Jul 1, 2028

Anticipated

Primary completion date

Jul 1, 2028

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18 - 70+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Pathologically-proven diagnosis of squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx, larynx, or hypopharynx. Squamous cell carcinoma of unknown primary is not allowed.
  • Patients must have clinically or radiographically evident measureable disease at the primary site and/or nodal stations. Diagnostic lymph node excision (≤ 2 nodes) is also allowable.
  • Patients may undergo a diagnostic or therapeutic transoral resection for a T1-2 tonsil or base of tongue cancer.
  • Clinical stage I-IVB (AJCC, 7th edition); stages I-II glottic cancer are excluded
  • Age ≥ 18 years.
  • ECOG Performance Status 0-2
  • All men, as well as women of child-bearing potential must agree to use adequate contraception (hormonal or barrier method of birth control; abstinence) prior to study entry, for the duration of study treatment, and for 90 days following completion of therapy. Should a woman become pregnant or suspect she is pregnant while participating in this study, she should inform her treating physician immediately.
  • A female of child-bearing potential is any woman (regardless of sexual orientation, having undergone a tubal ligation, or remaining celibate by choice) who meets the following criteria Has not undergone a hysterectomy or bilateral oophorectomy; or Has not been naturally postmenopausal for at least 12 consecutive months (i.e., has had menses at any time in the preceding 12 consecutive months).
  • Neck CT and/or neck MRI, and PET-CT
  • Ability to understand and the willingness to sign a written informed consent.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Distant metastasis.
  • Inability to undergo either a diagnostic CT with contrast or simulation CT with contrast.
  • Inability to undergo PET-CT.
  • Stage I and II glottic carcinoma.
  • Gross total excision of both the primary and nodal disease.
  • Synchronous non-skin cancer primaries outside of the oropharynx, larynx, and hypopharynx except for low- and intermediate-risk prostate cancer and synchronous well-differentiated thyroid cancer; in the latter case, surgery may occur before or after treatment, provided all other eligibility criteria are met.
  • Prior invasive malignancy with an expected disease-free interval of less than 3 years.
  • Prior systemic chemotherapy for the study cancer; prior chemotherapy for a remote cancer is allowable.
  • Prior radiotherapy to the region of the study cancer that would result in overlap of radiation fields.
  • Subjects may not be receiving any other investigational agents.
  • History of allergic reactions attributed to compounds of similar chemical or biologic composition to the chemotherapy agents in this study (if necessary).
  • Uncontrolled intercurrent illness including, but not limited to, ongoing or active infection, symptomatic congestive heart failure, unstable angina pectoris, cardiac arrhythmia, or psychiatric illness/social situations that, in the opinion of the investigator, would limit compliance with study requirements.
  • History of severe immunosuppression, including HIV, and organ or autologous or allogeneic stem cell transplant.

Study Design

Enrollment

80 participants

Anticipated

Allocation

Randomized

Intervention Model

Parallel Assignment

Primary purpose

Treatment

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

active comparator: Standard radiotherapy with elective neck irradiation (ENI)

The elective neck dose is 56 Gy in 35 fractions Lymph nodes measuring 17 mm or greater in any dimension, or showing FDG above adjacent blood pool, may receive 63 Gy in 35 fractions per physician discretion.The elective neck field is determined by the primary site.

The Oropharynx:

Node-positive side: Levels IB-V and RP nodes Node-negative side: Levels II-IV, RP at discretion of physician For ipsilateral tonsil decision-making, see 4.1.1.6.3

The Larynx:

Node-positive side: Levels IB-V Node-negative side: Levels II-IV Subglottic extension: Level VI

Hypopharynx:

Node-positive side: Levels IB-V and RP nodes Node-negative side: Levels II-V and RP nodes Pyriform sinus involvement: Level VI

experimental: Involved and suspicious lymph node delineation and targeting

After the involved and suspicious nodes are contoured, the physician will contour remaining nodes that are present on more than one CT slice and submit them to the AI-Radiomics module for assessment.The nodal gross tumor volume (GTVn, GTVns and GTVnps for involved, suspicious nodes or potentially suspicious) will be contoured on the planning CT, using radiographic and clinical information to define its extent. The total dose for GTVns is 63 Gy in 35 fractions, and the total dose for GTVnps is 56 Gy in 35 fractions. For lymph nodes identified as potentially suspicious by the AI- Radiomics module that are outside of the expected primary draining zone, physicians may not treat the lymph node if the module assesses its estimation uncertainty as greater than 50%.

Interventions

ENI using IMRT with or without chemotherapy

This study is a phase II single-blinded randomized trial comparing standard ENI with involved nodal radiotherapy. INRT using intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) with or without chemotherapy (if given, either cisplatin, cetuximab, or carboplatin- paclitaxel)

INRT

INRT using intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) with or without chemotherapy (if given, either cisplatin, cetuximab, or carboplatin- paclitaxel)

ENI

ENI using IMRT with or without chemotherapy

Primary outcome measure

  • The probability at two years: SEVR in INRT versus ENI patients [ Time Frame: 2 years ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Sarah Neufeld

214-645-8525Sarah.hardee@utsouthwestern.edu

Liliana Robles

214-645-8525liliana.robles@utsouthwestern.edu

Locations

UT Southwestern Medical Center

Recruiting

Dallas, Texas, United States, 75390

Principal Investigator:

David Sher, MD

More Information

Sponsor

University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

Last update posted

Apr 17, 2026

Last verified

Apr, 2026

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-09-10. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center on 2026-04-17.