A Pilot Study Using 18F-DOPA PET-guided Radiotherapy in Gliomas

March 31, 2026 updated by: Mayo Clinic

A Pilot Study Evaluating the Utility of 18F-DOPA PET for Radiotherapy Treatment Planning of Malignant Glioma Patients

For most brain tumors, radiation treatment is guided by a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan. In this study, information from a special scan, called a Positron Emission Tomography/ Computed Tomography (PET/CT) scan using an amino acid called Fluorine-18-L-dihydroxyphenylalanine (18F-DOPA) will also be used. This type of scan has shown promise in being able to better distinguish tumor from normal brain tissue and may help to more accurately plan radiation treatment. This type of scan can also assist the radiation oncologist in identifying the most aggressive regions of the tumor. The goal of this study is to compare the 18F-DOPA PET/CT scan with the MRI scan for identifying where the disease is that needs to be treated with radiation.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
25

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Minnesota
      • Rochester, Minnesota, United States, 55905
        • Mayo Clinic

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

7 years and older (Child, Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Newly diagnosed or recurrent WHO Grade II and Grade III Glioma patients.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age ≥7 years.
  • Biopsy confirmed newly diagnosed or recurrent WHO Grade II or Grade III malignant glioma.
  • CT simulation, 18F-DOPA PET imaging, and standard of care pre-radiotherapy MRI scans to be performed at Mayo Clinic Rochester.
  • Willing to sign release of information for any follow-up records.
  • Provide informed written consent.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients diagnosed with WHO grade IV malignant glioma.
  • Patients previously treated with radiation therapy.
  • Unable to undergo MRI scans with contrast (e.g. cardiac pacemaker, defibrillator, kidney failure).
  • Unable to undergo an 18F-DOPA PET scan (e.g. Parkinson's Disease, taking anti-dopaminergic, or dopamine agonist medication or less than 6 half-lives from discontinuance of dopamine agonists)
  • Pregnant women
  • Nursing women
  • Men or women of childbearing potential who are unwilling to employ adequate contraception

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Fluorine-18-L-dihydroxyphenylalanine
18F-DOPA PET imaging will be used to guide radiotherapy treatment volumes and patients will be followed post-treatment to analyze response and patterns of failure
Drug: Fluorine-18-L-dihydroxyphenylalanine
5 millicuries ± 10%; Intravenous injection; 1 time
Other Names:
  • 18F-DOPA
  • FDOPA

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Treatment volume comparison
Time Frame: 6 weeks
The primary endpoint for this pilot study will be to compare radiotherapy treatment volumes defined by conventional MR-only with treatment volumes defined with both 18F-DOPA PET and conventional MR information
6 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Advanced imaging volume comparison
Time Frame: 6 weeks
For patients who have advanced MRI scans performed as part of standard clinical care, advanced MRI volumes will be compared with conventional MRI volumes as well as 18F-DOPA PET volumes
6 weeks
Concordance with recurrence
Time Frame: up to 10 years
For patients who progress radiographically within the observation period of this study will compare concordance of recurrence locations with pre-treatment 18F-DOPA PET uptake
up to 10 years

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Mayo Clinic

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Brains Together for the Cure

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Nadia N Laack, MD, Mayo Clinic
  • Principal Investigator: Debra Brinkmann, PhD, Mayo Clinic
  • Principal Investigator: Deanna Pafundi, PhD, Mayo Clinic

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
April 8, 2014

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
March 26, 2021

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
March 1, 2031

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
April 1, 2014

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
April 3, 2014

First Posted (Estimated)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
April 4, 2014

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
April 6, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
March 31, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
March 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 11-002165

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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