Assessment of Head and Neck Tumor Hypoxia Using 18F-Fluoromisonidazole

July 31, 2012 updated by: M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

The purpose of this clinical research study is to answer the following questions using 18F-fluoromisonidazole as an imaging agent:

  1. Do cells exist in human tumors that are at very low oxygen levels (hypoxic cells)?
  2. If hypoxic cells exist in human tumors, do they effect the ability of radiotherapy to control human tumors?
  3. Can Positron Emission Tomography (PET scanning) detect hypoxic cells in human tumors?

Study Overview

Detailed Description

Hypoxic (low oxygen) cells have long been known to exist in animal tumors. It is also known that hypoxic cells are more difficult to eliminate with radiotherapy than tumor cells at normal levels of oxygen (normoxic cells). However, the extent to which hypoxic cells limit the curability of human tumors is uncertain. To determine if hypoxic cells exist in human tumors and how hypoxic cells might influence the efficacy of radiotherapy, this study involves direct measurements of oxygen levels in human tumors compared to the tumor uptake of the experimental drug, 18F-fluoromisonidazole (18F-FMISO), visualized with PET scanning. 18F-fluoromisonidazole has been used with PET imaging to tell the difference between growing tumors which have high and low oxygen content.

Before beginning radiotherapy, a PET scan (series of pictures, 20 min. scan) will be performed at 2 hours after an intravenous injection of a small amount of radioactive traces drug, 18F-fluoromisonidazole (18F-FMISO) to observe the active hypoxia tumors areas. Upon completion of the 18F-FMISO PET scan, direct oxygen measurements will be obtained by placing a small needle into the tumor under computer tomographic (CT) guidance. The PET scan and needle measurements will be repeated every 4 weeks into the course of radiotherapy and again after the completion of radiotherapy. The measurement obtained by 18F-FMISO PET scanning (non-invasive technique) and by direct needle measurements (invasive technique) will be correlated with the eventual treatment outcome for future use.

Study Type

Interventional

Phase

  • 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 Locations

    • Texas
      • Houston, Texas, United States, 77030
        • University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center

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

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Histologically proven squamous cell carcinoma of head and neck wth metastatic neck nodes greater than or equal to 2cm
  • Karnofsky performance status greater or equal to 60%

Exclusion Criteria:

  • No prior irradiation or surgery to head/neck area
  • No prior chemotherapy within 1 month of participation and have recovered from associated related effects
  • Not pregnant
  • Any intercurrent medical or physiologic disorder which would prevent informed consent
  • Underlying medical problems which would compromise technical ability to deliver a "standard course" of radiation therapy
  • Patients with PT or PTT over 1.5 times normal

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: Diagnostic
  • Allocation: Non-Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: PET + 18F-fluoromisonidazole
Small amount of radioactive traces drug given by intravenous injection prior to PET Scan
Other Names:
  • 18F-FMISO
Series of pictures using 20 minute scan performed 2 hours after an 18F-fluoromisonidazole injection

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Direct Oxygen Measurements
Time Frame: PET scan and needle measurements will be repeated every 4 weeks into the course of radiotherapy and again after the completion of radiotherapy.
PET scan and needle measurements will be repeated every 4 weeks into the course of radiotherapy and again after the completion of radiotherapy.

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Investigators

  • Study Chair: Donald A Podoloff, M.D., UT MD Anderson Cancer Center

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.

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

January 1, 1994

Primary Completion (Actual)

June 1, 2003

Study Completion (Actual)

June 1, 2003

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

May 24, 2002

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 24, 2002

First Posted (Estimate)

May 27, 2002

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

August 1, 2012

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 31, 2012

Last Verified

July 1, 2012

More Information

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.

Subscribe