The Addition of Metformin to Definitive Radiotherapy in Patients With Stage III NSCLC (RADFORMIN)

Randomized Phase II Trial of Definitive Radiotherapy With or Without metFORMin in Patients With Inoperable Stage III Non-small Cell Lung Cancer

Study the effect of metformin when added to definitive locoregional radiotherapy on locoregional control and relapse rate in stage III non-small cell lung cancer patients receiving sequential chemoradiotherapy. Try to identify subsets of patients who derive maximum benefit of adding metformin to radiotherapy using innovative biomarkers.

Study Overview

• Status: Terminated
• Conditions: Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: No metformin; Drug: Metformin

Detailed Description

The administration of oral metformin during radiotherapy is thought to decrease the hypoxic fraction of tumour cells, improving radiosensitivity and promoting apoptosis, resulting in better outcome. This hypothesis will be evaluated in a trial with randomized design. All patients willing to participate will receive definitive radiotherapy, either in combination with metformin (arm C) or without metformin (arm B). Patients who refuse to participate in the randomized part can be included in the observational arm of the study (arm A). In addition, the validated biomarker of tumour hypoxia (18F-HX4 PET/CT scintigraphy (18F-flortanidazole positron emission computed tomography) and biomarkers of resistance, apoptosis and glucose metabolism will be evaluated for their potential predictive value.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 3
• Phase: Phase 2

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Belgium
  • Antwerp
    • Edegem, Antwerp, Belgium, 2650
      • University Hospital Antwerp

Participation Criteria

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:

• Provision of signed and dated informed consent form.
• Stated willingness to comply with all study procedures and availability for the duration of the study.
• Ability to take oral medication and willing to adhere to the RADFORMIN-regimen.
• Male or female, ≥ 18 years of age.
• Histological or cytological proven stage III NSCLC after adequate staging with at least 18F-2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG) PET/CT, contrast enhanced CT-thorax and contrast-enhanced CT/MRI brain. (According to 8th edition of TNM classification (= tumor, node, metastasis))
• Absence of diabetes, (diabetes is defined as fasting plasma glucose >126 mg/dL or random plasma glucose >200 mg/dL).
• Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance score (= World Health Organization (WHO) score) of 0-1.
• Adequate hematologic, hepatic and renal function as clinically acceptable in the opinion of the Primary Investigator.
• Adequate pulmonary function in order to be administered definitive radiotherapy. With Forced Expiratory Volume (FEV) > 1.2 litres per second or more than 50% of predicted, and diffusion capacity of lung for carbon monoxide (DLCO) > 40% predicted. (Values without administration of medical bronchodilation. In case of Tiffeneau < 70% bronchodilation will be administered)
• Having received at least 2 cycles of platinum-based chemotherapy. This according to institutional standards and without progression (on a restaging CT-scan within 3 weeks after day 1 of the last given cycle, according to RECIST criteria).

Exclusion Criteria:

• Current use of metformin, insulin or other oral antidiabetic drugs (thiazolidinediones, sulfonylureas, mitiglinides, alpha-glucosidase inhibitors, incretin mimetics, dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors, amylin analogues, sodium-glucose-cotransporter-2 (SGLT-2)-inhibitors) for any reason.
• Evidence for metastatic disease.
• Conditions associated with increased risk of metformin-associated lactic acidosis: New York Heart Association class III or IV congestive heart failure, history of acidosis of any type, known kidney injury or disease, alcoholic liver disease or habitual intake of 3 or more alcoholic beverages per day.
• Known pregnancy or lactating female patients.
• Known allergic reactions to components of metformin.
• Prior invasive malignancy within the past year (in remission, without evidence for current active disease and without maintenance therapy). Except non-melanomatous skin cancer, non-invasive carcinoma in-situ of the breast, oral cavity or cervix.
• Known acquired immune deficiency syndrome.

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

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
No Intervention: A: Observational arm; Radiotherapy as per standard of care without metformin, no additional biomarkers/imaging will be performed
Other: B: Control arm; Radiotherapy as per standard of care without metformin, with additional biomarkers/imaging	Other: No metformin; Standard of care without metformin.
Active Comparator: C: Interventional arm; Radiotherapy as per standard of care with metformin, with additional biomarkers/imaging	Drug: Metformin; Metformin 500 mg given 14 days before start until the end of radiation therapy. Once daily during the first 7 days, afterwards twice daily until the end of treatment.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Loco regional progression-free survival rate	(LPFS)	1 year after start of treatment

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Overall survival	(OS)	time until death; assessed up to 60 months after treatment start
Progression-free survival	(PFS)	earliest date of disease progression (local or distant), assessed up to 24 months after treatment start

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: ethisch.comite@uza.be
• Collaborators: Stand Up To Cancer
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Jan van Meerbeeck, PhD, MD, P.I.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): July 30, 2018
• Primary Completion (Actual): January 8, 2021
• Study Completion (Actual): January 8, 2021

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 24, 2019
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 18, 2019
• First Posted (Actual): November 20, 2019

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): January 15, 2021
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: January 12, 2021
• Last Verified: January 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Metformin; Radiotherapy; Tumor Hypoxia
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Respiratory Tract Diseases; Neoplasms; Lung Diseases; Neoplasms by Site; Respiratory Tract Neoplasms; Thoracic Neoplasms; Carcinoma, Bronchogenic; Bronchial Neoplasms; Lung Neoplasms; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung; Hypoglycemic Agents; Physiological Effects of Drugs; Metformin
• Other Study ID Numbers: OPM-RADFORMIN-1801

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No