High Dose Radiotherapy for Palliation (Hi-D)

August 10, 2026 updated by: British Columbia Cancer Agency

A Prospective Study of High Dose Radiotherapy for Palliation: Hi-D

Palliative radiation is effective for controlling or preventing symptoms such as pain, bleeding, dyspnea, and cord compression. Recently, studies have shown that additional dose escalation may result in superior local control. The investigators propose a phase II single arm trial to evaluate a novel high-dose radiation regimen, which will be 27 Gray in 3 fractions with dose escalation within the tumour (Hi-D).

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Not yet 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.

Detailed Description

This study is being done to see if a new palliative radiotherapy technique can prevent growth or shrink tumors that are bigger than 5cm, for a longer period of time than traditional palliative radiotherapy. The main outcome the investigators are measuring is called "local control"- this refers to how long the treatment is able to stop a cancer from growing. With traditional palliative radiotherapy, radiation is given in smaller doses over multiple, (usually 5 or 10) treatments (called fractions), and the radiation is spread evenly around the tumor. Radiation dose is measured in Gray (Gy). Generally, standard of care/traditional palliative radiotherapy is given as 20 Gy in 5 fractions or 30 Gy in 10 fractions. The new palliative radiotherapy technique the investigators are testing gives a similar radiation dose overall of 27 Gy but gives much higher doses per fraction in only 3 fractions and uses cutting edge technology to concentrate most of the radiation to the center of the tumor. This means that compared to traditional palliative radiotherapy, there is a higher amount of radiation dose that the participant's body and the particularly the center of the tumor is receiving over a shorter period of time. This means a more aggressive treatment for the participants cancer but can also cause an increased risk for side effects. However, because the investigators will concentrate the high doses of radiation only in the center of the tumor, nearby organs do not get too close to the high doses and are spared. The investigators expect that this technique will be as safe as traditional palliative radiotherapy and have a longer duration of effectiveness (longer local control) compared to the older techniques.

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.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

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.
21

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

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

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • Canada
    • British Columbia
      • Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

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

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

5.1. Inclusion Criteria

Subjects must meet all of the following criteria to be eligible for participation in this study:

  • Age 18 or older.
  • Able to provide informed consent
  • Patient has histologically confirmed solid tumour malignancy
  • ECOG performance status 0 - 2
  • Life Expectancy > 6 months
  • Locally advanced or metastatic disease with 1-3 target lesions larger than 5cm in minimum dimension, with no more than 2 target lesions in a single organ; patients can have any number of non-target lesions
  • A history and physical exam, including ECOG performance status, performed within 6 weeks prior to trial enrollment
  • Not suitable for or declined curative-intent treatment
  • Subject has had a CT chest, abdomen and pelvis or PET-CT within 8 weeks prior to enrollment, and with 12 weeks of treatment
  • MRI spine for patients receiving RT to vertebral or paraspinal metastases
  • Patient is judged able to:
  • Maintain a stable position during therapy
  • Tolerate immobilization device(s) that may be required to deliver radiation safely

5.2. Exclusion Criteria

Subjects are excluded from the study if any of the following criteria apply:

  • Hematologic malignancy
  • Disease limited to intracranial sites
  • Serious medical co-morbidities precluding radiotherapy
  • Prior radiation to target lesion that precludes delivery of repeat radiation. All such cases should be discussed with the local and study PIs.
  • Pregnant people

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

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
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.
Experimental: High-Dose RT
27Gy in 3 fractions with boost
Radiation: Palliative Radiotherapy
standard dose RT
Radiation: Palliative Radiotherapy
high-dose RT

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
Local Control
Time Frame: 4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up
to determine the length of time from treatment to tumor growth, recurrence, or progression at radiated sites achieved when using high-dose palliative radiotherapy
4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up

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
Overall Survival
Time Frame: 4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up.
Time from treatment to death from any cause, or date of last follow-up, whichever occurs first.
4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up.
Progression-Free Survival
Time Frame: 4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up
Time from treatment to disease progression at any site or death.
4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up
Side Effects
Time Frame: 4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up.
determine side effects from the proposed radiotherapy treatment
4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up.
Local treatment-free survival
Time Frame: 4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up
Defined as time from treatment to progression beyond next line of local therapy or death from any cause or date of last follow-up, whichever occurs first.
4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up
systemic intensification-free survival
Time Frame: 4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up
Time from treatment to progression beyond next line of systemic therapy or death from any cause or date of last follow-up, whichever occurs first
4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up
Patient reported Quality of Life
Time Frame: 4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up.
Patient reported quality of life as measured by the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General (FACT-G) questionnaire
4 years, with 2 years of accrual and 2 years of follow up.

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.
British Columbia Cancer Agency

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: Wei Liu, MD, FRCPC, BC Cancer - Vancouver

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 (Estimated)

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.
March 1, 2027

Primary Completion (Estimated)

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.
July 1, 2030

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.
August 31, 2030

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).
November 24, 2025

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.
December 5, 2025

First Posted (Actual)

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.
December 18, 2025

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.
August 12, 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.
August 10, 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.
August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

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.
  • Hi-D

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

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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