Adjuvant Chemotherapy Plus Radiation Therapy in Treating Women With Early-Stage Breast Cancer

Summary

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy work in different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumors cells. Combining chemotherapy with radiation therapy may kill more tumor cells. It is not yet known which regimen of chemotherapy plus radiation therapy is more effective for early-stage breast cancer. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of two different regimens of adjuvant chemotherapy plus radiation therapy in treating women who have early-stage breast cancer.

Timeline

Start

1998-07

Primary completion

—

Completion

2006-04

Outcome

Met primary endpoint

paper With 10.2 years median follow-up, the ten-year local recurrence rates were 4.6% and 7.1% in the synchronous and sequential arms respectively (hazard ratio (HR) 0.62; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.43-0.90; p = 0.012). PMID 31785830 ↗

Publications

• Background Bowden SJ, Fernando IN, Burton A. Delaying radiotherapy for the delivery of adjuvant chemotherapy in the combined modality treatment of early breast cancer: is it disadvantageous and could combined treatment be the answer? Clin Oncol (R Coll Radiol). 2006 Apr;18(3):247-56. doi: 10.1016/j.clon.2005.11.010.
• Background Fernando I, Bowden S, Dunn J: The combination of chemotherapy and radiotherapy in the adjuvant treatment of breast cancer. [Abstract] Radiother Oncol 58 (Suppl 1): A-34, S10, 2001.
• Background Fernando IN. The role of radiotherapy in patients undergoing mastectomy for carcinoma of the breast. Clin Oncol (R Coll Radiol). 2000;12(3):158-65. doi: 10.1053/clon.2000.9143.
• Fernando IN, Lax S, Bowden SJ, Ahmed I, Steven JH, Churn M, Brunt AM, Agrawal RK, Canney P, Stevens A, Rea DW. Detailed Sub-study Analysis of the SECRAB Trial: Quality of Life, Cosmesis and Chemotherapy Dose Intensity. Clin Oncol (R Coll Radiol). 2023 Jun;35(6):397-407. doi: 10.1016/j.clon.2023.03.007. Epub 2023 Mar 20.
• Fernando IN, Bowden SJ, Herring K, Brookes CL, Ahmed I, Marshall A, Grieve R, Churn M, Spooner D, Latief TN, Agrawal RK, Brunt AM, Stevens A, Goodman A, Canney P, Bishop J, Ritchie D, Dunn J, Poole CJ, Rea DW; SECRAB Investigators. Synchronous versus sequential chemo-radiotherapy in patients with early stage breast cancer (SECRAB): A randomised, phase III, trial. Radiother Oncol. 2020 Jan;142:52-61. doi: 10.1016/j.radonc.2019.10.014. Epub 2019 Nov 27.

Drugs

Indications