Study on the Quality of Life (QoL) After Liver Surgery

Quality of Life After Hepatectomy for Primary Liver Tumors: a Prospective Randomized Clinical Trial on the Role of Supplemental Therapy With Synchrolevels

Liver cancer in adult men is the fifth most frequently diagnosed cancer worldwide, and is the second leading cause of cancer-related death in the world. To date, liver surgery is the treatment of choice for those patients with resectable disease. However, still today the proportion of resectable patients is limited due to a large proportion of patients presenting with advances disease. For these patients, the treatment consists of systemic chemotherapy, which unfortunately is associated with median survival of 12 months. The choice of the appropriate treatment scheme adheres to the standard guidelines based on the results of clinical trials. Of note, in case of HCC and MFCCC very few international approved therapeutic guidelines are available. In particular, there is no agreement among specialists about the use of chemotherapy as adjuvant treatment after hepatic resection for HCC or MFCCC. An important aspect of the postoperative "adjuvant therapy" is the possibility to enhance the recovery after the operation. Indeed, the possibility to accelerate the functional recovery in a patient who receives a major cancer operation is of paramount importance. In this sense, having a product that might help the patients' recovery should be one of the priorities of the medical and pharmaceutical industry. To our knowledge, there are no previous studies that investigated such an important aspect.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Quality of Life; Cholangiocarcinoma; Hepatocarcinoma
• Intervention / Treatment: Dietary supplement: Synchrolevels

Detailed Description

Liver cancer in adult men is the fifth most frequently diagnosed cancer worldwide, and is the second leading cause of cancer-related death in the world. In adult women, it is the seventh most commonly diagnosed cancer and the sixth leading cause of cancer death. The two main types of liver cancer are hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and mass-forming cholangiocarcinoma (MFCCC). The annual overall incidence is approximately 70 and 2 per 100,000 inhabitants for HCC and MFCCC respectively.

To date, liver surgery is the treatment of choice for those patients with resectable disease. For some other patients, with specific tumor features, liver transplantation may be applied with good results. However, still today the proportion of resectable or transplantable patients is limited due to a large proportion of patients presenting with advances disease. For these patients, the treatment consists of systemic chemotherapy, which unfortunately is associated with median survival of 12 months. The choice of the appropriate treatment scheme adheres to the standard guidelines based on the results of clinical trials. Of note, in case of HCC and MFCCC very few international approved therapeutic guidelines are available. In particular, there is no agreement among specialists about the use of chemotherapy as adjuvant treatment after hepatic resection for HCC or MFCCC. In other words, in the actual clinical practice a patient operated for HCC or MFCCC generally does not receive postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy.

Another important aspect of the postoperative adjuvant therapy is the possibility to enhance the recovery after the operation. Indeed, the possibility to accelerate the functional recovery in a patient who receives a major cancer operation is of paramount importance. In this sense, having a product that might help the patients' recovery should be one of the priorities of the medical and pharmaceutical industry. To our knowledge, there are no previous studies that investigated such an important aspect.

Synchro Levels consists of a supplemental nutritional therapy that has been present on the market for more than 15 years. Some studies reported its safety and efficacy in patients with different advanced solid tumors showing an unexpected rate of partial response. However, very few data are available on its role in improving the patients' performance status and the quality of life. This research project aims to test the role of Synchro Levels in enhancing the functional recovery of patients submitted to hepatectomy for HCC or MFCCC.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 60
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Italy
  • Lombardia
    • Rozzano, Lombardia, Italy, 20089
      • Humanitas Research Hospital

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:

• Written informed consent
• Age ≥ 18 years old
• First diagnosis and first hepatectomy for HCC or MFCCC

Exclusion Criteria:

• Refute to sign the informed consent
• Age < 18 years old
• Indication to perform adjuvant (postoperative) chemotherapy
• Any psychological or psychiatric condition that might compromise the patients' compliance.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Quadruple

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Placebo Comparator: Control	Dietary supplement: Synchrolevels; Supplement therapy to model the recovery after liver surgery
Experimental: Interventional	Dietary supplement: Synchrolevels; Supplement therapy to model the recovery after liver surgery

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Quality of life after liver surgery	Quality of life (recovery after liver surgery) measured by using the European form SF36. The 36-Item Short Form Survey (SF-36) is an oft-used, well-researched, self-reported measure of health. It comprises 36 questions which cover eight domains of health.	6 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Humanitas Clinical and Research Center

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): January 1, 2018
• Primary Completion (Actual): April 1, 2022
• Study Completion (Actual): July 1, 2022

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 15, 2022
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 15, 2022
• First Posted (Actual): July 19, 2022

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): August 4, 2022
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 2, 2022
• Last Verified: August 1, 2022

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Digestive System Diseases; Neoplasms by Histologic Type; Neoplasms; Neoplasms by Site; Adenocarcinoma; Carcinoma; Neoplasms, Glandular and Epithelial; Digestive System Neoplasms; Liver Diseases; Liver Neoplasms; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular; Cholangiocarcinoma
• Other Study ID Numbers: QOLILS

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: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No