Proton Therapy vs. IMRT for Low or Intermediate Risk Prostate Cancer (PARTIQoL)

Prostate Advanced Radiation Technologies Investigating Quality of Life (PARTIQoL): A Phase III Randomized Clinical Trial of Proton Therapy vs IMRT for Low or Intermediate Risk Prostate Cancer

We are studying whether men being treated for prostate cancer have the same amount of side effects from either one of two different external radiation treatments: IMRT or PBT. With IMRT, a number of x-ray beams are used to shape the radiation to the prostate. PBT is another type of external radiation treatment for prostate cancer that is used in a few centers in the United States. Protons are tiny particles with positive charge that can be controlled to travel a certain distance and stop. PBT is precise like IMRT, but it uses proton beams instead of x-ray beams.

IMRT and PBT aim to deliver most of the radiation to the prostate cancer while sparing surrounding tissues. Both IMRT and PBT have been used in the treatment of prostate cancer and are thought to be equally effective at curing prostate cancer. However, both treatments have also been shown to cause the potential side effects of radiation, including bowel, urinary and erectile problems. It is possible that side effect rates with PBT will be lower, the same, or even higher than with IMRT, but this has not been studied well to date. Though both of these radiation therapies have been used in the past to treat prostate cancer, there has never been a study that compares the effects of these two therapies to see which one has less side effects.

In this research study, we are comparing IMRT to PBT to determine which therapy best minimizes the side effects of treatment.

Study Overview

• Status: Active, not recruiting
• Conditions: Prostate Cancer
• Intervention / Treatment: Radiation: Proton Beam Therapy; Radiation: Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy

Detailed Description

Because no one knows which of the study options is best, you will be "randomized" into one of the study groups: IMRT or PBT. Randomization means that you are put into a group by chance, like flipping a coin. Neither you nor the research doctor will choose which group you will be in. You will have an equal chance of being placed in either group. Randomization makes the study better from a scientific point of view because it helps ensure that patients receiving IMRT and proton therapy are similar. You will be receiving only one type of radiation, either IMRT or PBT throughout your participation in the study.

Before you begin radiation therapy you will have a pelvic CT scan in order to design your radiation treatment. Doctors will use information gathered from these scans to plan the best way to deliver radiation to your tumor.

Both types of radiation therapy will be given once a day for 5 days (no weekends or holidays) for up to 9 weeks. Both IMRT and PBT will require that you lie on a table for less than 15 minutes to obtain your treatment.

During each visit you will be asked questions about your general health and specific questions about any problems that you might be having and any medications you might be taking. You will also undergo a physical exam and complete some quality of life questionnaires.

After your radiation therapy you will have follow up visits at 3,6,9,12,18,24,36,48 and 60 months.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 454
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Florida
    • Jacksonville, Florida, United States, 32206
      • University of Florida Health Proton Therapy Institute
  • Illinois
    • Chicago, Illinois, United States, 60190
      • Northwestern Medicine Chicago Proton Center
  • Maryland
    • College Park, Maryland, United States, 20742
      • University of Maryland Medical Center
  • Massachusetts
    • Boston, Massachusetts, United States, 02114
      • Massachusetts General Hospital
    • Danvers, Massachusetts, United States, 01923
      • Mass General/North Shore Cancer Center
  • Minnesota
    • Rochester, Minnesota, United States, 55905
      • Mayo Clinic
  • Missouri
    • St Louis, Missouri, United States, 63110
      • Washington University
  • New Jersey
    • New Brunswick, New Jersey, United States, 08903
      • Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey
    • Somerset, New Jersey, United States, 08873
      • Princeton ProCure Proton Therapy Center
  • Ohio
    • Cleveland, Ohio, United States, 44106
      • University Hospital of Cleveland
  • Pennsylvania
    • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, 19104
      • Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania
  • Tennessee
    • Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, 37909
      • Provision Proton Therapy Center
  • Washington
    • Seattle, Washington, United States, 98195
      • University of Washington Medical Center

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 14 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Diagnosed with histologically confirmed adenocarcinoma of the prostate based on core-biopsy within 1 year of study entry from TRUS
• Clinical stages T1c to T2c
• PSA <20, within 6 months of study entry
• Participants who are currently receiving Dutasteride (or have received it within the last 90 days) or Finasteride (or have received it within the last 30 days) must have a PSA of ≤ 10
• Gleason score ≤6, 3 + 4 = 7, or 4 + 3 = 7
• ECOG Performance Status 0-1 as documented within 3 months prior to study entry
• Must have complete history and physical examination within 45 days of study entry and digital rectal examination of prostate within 180 days of study entry

Exclusion Criteria:

• Prior surgery (not including TURP), cryosurgery, radiofrequency ablation, chemotherapy or radiation for PCa
• Prior or planned androgen deprivation or bilateral orchiectomy
• Distant metastases, or clinically or pathologically involved lymph nodes confirmed by a CT scan within 365 days of study entry
• Hip prosthesis, inflammatory bowel disease or connective tissue disorder such as active scleroderma or lupus
• Individuals with a history of other malignancies are ineligible unless 1) they have been disease-free for at least 5 years OR 2) are deemed by the investigator to be at low risk for recurrence of that malignancy with no plans for adjuvant systemic chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy and have received overall principal investigator approval.
• Individuals who have AIDS (CD4 < 200 or an AIDS-defining illness) or are HIV positive and not on HAART therapy are ineligible.
• Major medical or psychiatric illness

• Individuals with any of the following conditions are excluded from this study:

  • Unstable angina and/or congestive heart failure requiring hospitalization within the last 6 months.
  • Transmural myocardial infarction within the last 6 months.
  • Acute bacterial or fungal infection requiring intravenous antibiotics at the time of registration.
  • Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbation or other respiratory illness requiring hospitalization or precluding study therapy at the time of registration
  • History of Hepatic insufficiency resulting in clinical jaundice and/or coagulation defects within the last 12 months

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: PBT; Proton Beam Therapy	Radiation: Proton Beam Therapy; 5 days per week up to 9 weeks
Active Comparator: IMRT; Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy	Radiation: Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy; 5 times per week up to 9 weeks

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Efficacy of PBT vs. IMRT	Compare the reduction in mean EPIC bowel scores for men with low or low-intermediate risk PCa treated with PBT versus IMRT at 24 months following radiation (where higher scores represent better outcomes)	2 years

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Disease Specific Quality of Life	Assess the effectiveness of PBT versus IMRT for men with low or low-intermediate risk PCa in terms of disease-specific quality of life as measured by patient-reported outcomes, perceptions of care and adverse events	2 years
Cost Effectiveness of PBT vs. IMRT	Assess the cost-effectiveness of PBT versus IMRT under current conditions and model future cost-effectiveness for alternative treatment delivery and cost scenarios	2 years
Radiation Dose and Bowel, Urinary and Erectile Function	Develop predictive models to examine the associations between selected metrics of individual radiation dose distributions and patient reported bowel, urinary and erectile function	2 years
Identification and Evaluation Biomarkers of PCa Behavior	Identify and evaluate biomarkers of prostate cancer behavior and response to radiotherapy	2 years
Long Term Survival	Assess longer-term rates of disease-specific and overall survival as well as development of late effects such as second cancers	10 years

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Massachusetts General Hospital
• Collaborators: National Cancer Institute (NCI); Mayo Clinic; University of Pennsylvania; Washington University School of Medicine; University of Maryland, Baltimore; University of Washington; University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center; Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey; ProCure Proton Therapy Center; Northwestern Medicine Chicago Proton Center; Provision Center for Proton Therapy; University of Florida Proton Therapy Institute
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Jason A Efstathiou, MD, DPhil, Massachusetts General Hospital

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Liu Y, Patel SA, Jani AB, Gillespie TW, Patel PR, Godette KD, Hershatter BW, Shelton JW, McDonald MW. Overall Survival After Treatment of Localized Prostate Cancer With Proton Beam Therapy, External-Beam Photon Therapy, or Brachytherapy. Clin Genitourin Cancer. 2021 Jun;19(3):255-266.e7. doi: 10.1016/j.clgc.2020.08.009. Epub 2020 Aug 28.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): July 25, 2012
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 1, 2025
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 1, 2030

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: June 8, 2012
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 8, 2012
• First Posted (Estimated): June 12, 2012

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): April 24, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 21, 2026
• Last Verified: April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Intermediate Risk; Low Risk
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Urogenital Diseases; Genital Diseases; Genital Neoplasms, Male; Urogenital Neoplasms; Neoplasms by Site; Neoplasms; Genital Diseases, Male; Prostatic Diseases; Male Urogenital Diseases; Prostatic Neoplasms; Therapeutics; Radiotherapy; Radiotherapy, Conformal; Radiotherapy, Computer-Assisted; Heavy Ion Radiotherapy; Radiotherapy, Intensity-Modulated; Proton Therapy
• Other Study ID Numbers: 11-497