Neoadjuvant Radiotherapy vs Upfront Surgery in Locally Advanced Proximal Rectal Cancer (PRELUDE)

September 2, 2026 updated by: Baki Aydinli, Istanbul University

The PRELUDE Study: A Prospective Cohort Study Comparing Neoadjuvant Radiotherapy Followed by Total Mesorectal Excision Versus Upfront Surgery in Patients With Locally Advanced Proximal Rectal Cancer

The PRELUDE Study: A Prospective Cohort Study Comparing Neoadjuvant Radiotherapy Followed by Total Mesorectal Excision Versus Upfront Surgery in Patients with Locally Advanced Proximal Rectal Cancer

The PRELUDE Study is a single-center, prospective cohort study designed to compare neoadjuvant radiotherapy followed by total mesorectal excision (TME) with upfront surgery alone in patients with locally advanced proximal rectal cancer.

The primary endpoint is the rate of local recurrence. Secondary endpoints include overall survival, disease-free survival, and functional outcomes related to bowel, urinary, and sexual function.

The aim of this study is to determine whether neoadjuvant radiotherapy reduces the risk of local recurrence and improves long-term oncological and functional outcomes in this anatomically distinct subgroup of patients with rectal cancer.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

100

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 Locations

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:

  • Locally Advanced Proximally Rectal Cancer

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Distant metastasis

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: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Upfront Surgery
Procedure: surgery
Upfront Surgery
Experimental: Neoadjuvant Radiotherapy Followed by Surgery
Procedure: surgery
Upfront Surgery
Radiation: radiotherapy
Neoadjuvant Radiotherapy

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Locally Recurrance
Time Frame: The first five years after enrollment.
The first five years after enrollment.

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Istanbul University

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 (Actual)

April 6, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

June 1, 2031

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 1, 2031

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 17, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 2, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

September 3, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

September 3, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 2, 2026

Last Verified

August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 01-06-2025-GIS

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

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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