Photobiomodulation for Cancer-Related Cognitive Impairment

May 1, 2026 updated by: Arash Asher, MD

Pilot Study of Photobiomodulation for Cancer-Related Cognitive Impairment

This is a single site, pilot randomized, double blinded control trial designed to assess changes in cognitive symptoms in cancer survivors with cancer-related cognitive impairment. Patients will be randomized into one of two Arms: Intervention or Control.

  • Arm A: Intervention Group: Use of the THOR LED Photobiomodulation helmet 3x per week for 6 weeks. Helmet will be in 'therapeutic setting', 35mW/cm2 = 42J/cm2
  • Arm B: Control Group: Use of the THOR LED Photobiomodulation helmet 3x per week for 6 weeks. Helmet will be in 'placebo setting', 0mW/cm2 = 0J/cm2

This study has been designed to assess the hypothesis that Photobiomodulation can have a positive impact on cognitive symptoms in cancer survivors with cancer-related cognitive impairment.

30 participants will be recruited for this study, 15 per group. Self-report questionnaires assessing cognitive concerns, cognitive abilities, quality of life, depression, and anxiety will be administered at three timepoints through the study Baseline, End of Study Visit and 1 Month Follow Up

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

30

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 Contact

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • California
      • Los Angeles, California, United States, 90048
        • Clinical Trial Recruitment Navigator
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Arash Asher, MD
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Jamie Myers, PhD
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Praveen Arany, PhD
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Joel Epstein, DMD
        • Contact:

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

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Adults ≥ 18 years
  • Previous diagnosis of stage I-III non-central nervous system solid tumor malignancy, Hodgkin, or Non-Hodgkin lymphoma
  • Completed cancer treatment (chemotherapy and/or radiation) more than 6 months ago but less than 5 years ago (Current concurrent endocrine therapy, anti-HER-2 therapy allowed, or other stable maintenance therapies (such as rituximab) will be allowed.
  • Self-reported cognitive complaints (score ≤ 54 on the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Cognition, Version 3, Perceived Cognitive Impairment subscale)
  • Written informed consent obtained from subject and ability for subject to comply with the requirements of the study.
  • Ability to read, write and understand either English OR Spanish.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Current pregnancy or nursing status
  • Current use of Photobiomodulation (PBM) (for any reason)
  • A lifetime history of any brain tumor or central nervous system metastasis
  • Previous use of intrathecal chemotherapy, chimeric antigen receptor treatment (CAR-T), or stem cell/marrow transplant
  • Known history of other neurological conditions involving impaired cognitive function (such as Alzheimer's Disease and related dementias, Parkinson's Disease, or Multiple Sclerosis).

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: Supportive Care
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Triple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Intervention Arm - Therapeutic Setting
Photobiomodulation Helmet, Therapeutic setting, 35mW/cm2 = 42J/cm2, 3 x Sessions per week for 6 weeks
Device: THOR LED Photobiomodulation Helmet - Therapeutic

Photobiomodulation (PBM) is a non-invasive treatment option that uses nonionizing light sources such as laser diodes and light-emitting diodes in the visible and near-infrared spectrum.

Each participant will be required to sit with the helmet device over their head for the length of their study session. Participants and study staff will wear protective goggles throughout each session. These goggles help to block out any red LED light emitted from the helmet device. Participants may experience a pleasant warmth upon their head during both the therapeutic and control settings.

Helmet will be in 'therapeutic setting' of 35mW/cm2 = 42J/cm2
Sham Comparator: Control Arm - Non-Therapeutic Setting
Photobiomodulation Helmet, Non-Therapeutic setting, 0mW/cm cm2 = 0J/cm2, 3 x Sessions per week for 6 weeks
Device: THOR LED Photobiomodulation Helmet - Control

Each participant will be required to sit with the helmet device over their head for the length of their study session. Participants and study staff will wear protective goggles throughout each session. These goggles help to block out any red LED light emitted from the helmet device. Participants may experience a pleasant warmth upon their head during both the therapeutic and control settings.

Helmet will be in 'non-therapeutic setting' of 0mW/cm2 = 0J/cm2

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Cognitive Symptoms
Time Frame: 1-Month Follow Up
Cognitive symptoms will be measured by changes in scores on the PROMIS Cognitive Function-Short-Form 8a. Scores can range from 8-40. with higher score representing better outcomes.
1-Month Follow Up

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Cognitive Abilities
Time Frame: 1-Month Follow Up
Cognitive Abilities will be measured by changes in scores in the PROMIS Cognitive Function Abilities - Short Form 8a. Scores can range from 8-40. with higher score representing better outcomes.
1-Month Follow Up
Quality of Life
Time Frame: 1-Month Follow Up
Quality of Life will be measured by changes in scores the PROMIS-29. Scores can range from 30-140, with higher score representing better outcomes.
1-Month Follow Up
Depression
Time Frame: 1-Month Follow Up
Depression will be measured by changes in scores the PROMIS-29. Scores can range from 4-20, with higher score representing better outcomes.
1-Month Follow Up
Anxiety
Time Frame: 1-Month Follow Up
Depression will be measured by changes in scores the PROMIS-29. Scores can range from 4-20. with higher score representing better outcomes.
1-Month Follow Up

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Arash Asher, MD

Collaborators

Thor

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Arash Asher, MD, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center

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)

June 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

June 1, 2028

Study Completion (Estimated)

June 1, 2029

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

May 4, 2023

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 4, 2023

First Posted (Actual)

May 11, 2023

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

May 6, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 1, 2026

Last Verified

May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • IIT2022-14-ASHER-HELMET

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

Yes

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

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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