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Breast CancerPhase 2NCT01042938

Curcumin for the Prevention of Radiation-induced Dermatitis in Breast Cancer Patients

A Phase 2 study testing Curcumin C3 Complex in people with Breast Cancer, run by University of Rochester at 1 site in United States.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

Ionizing radiation is a toxic agent and widely accepted form of treatment for various types of cancer. Despite advances in medical technology, radiation therapy still causes severe early and late skin effects. Radiation-induced dermatitis occurs in approximately 80% of patients. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 21 years and older, women only
Conditions the study is for
Breast Cancer
What is being tested?
Curcumin C3 Complex
Type of treatment
Pill or oral medicine
Could I receive a placebo?
Yes, some participants may receive a placebo
How many people
35 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
Jan 2008to Apr 2011
Phase
Phase 2
Are there results?
Yes, posted in the registrySummary in the doctors' view

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 21 years and older
  • Women only
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Female with a diagnosis of, non-inflammatory breast adenocarcinoma and be referred for post-operative radiotherapy without concurrent chemotherapy.
  • Participants must be at least 21 years of age.
  • Participants must not be pregnant.
  • Participants can be from any racial or ethnic origin.
  • Breast adenocarcinoma could have been treated by either lumpectomy or mastectomy with or without adjuvant or neoadjuvant chemotherapy or hormonal treatment.
  • Participants with in situ breast cancer are eligible.
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  • Participants who are prescribed concurrent hormone treatment with radiation treatment are eligible.
  • Participants must be scheduled to receive five sessions of radiation therapy per week (1 session per day) for at least four weeks using standard (1.8-2.0 Gy per session)or Canadian (2.2-2.5 Gy per session)irradiation fractionation.
  • A time period of three weeks must elapse after chemotherapy and surgery before beginning the study.
  • The total dose prescribed to the whole breast should be 50 Gy or greater.
  • Participants must be able to understand English and able to complete assessment forms (all assessment forms are in English).
  • Participants must be able to swallow medication.
  • Topical skin agents, e.g., Aquaphor, Cetaphil, or other emollients, are allowed either PRN or prophylactically.
  • Participant must give informed consent.

Who cannot join

  • Patients with bilateral breast cancer are not eligible.
  • Patients who have had previous radiation therapy to the breast or chest are not eligible.
  • Patients who are prescribed chemotherapy concurrently with radiation treatment are not eligible.
  • Patients who will be receiving treatment with Herceptin (trastuzumab), anti-coagulants, or anti-human epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) drugs, e.g. Iressa (gefitinib), Erbitux (cetuximab, C225), concurrently with their radiation therapy are not eligible.
  • Patients cannot have had breast reconstructions, implants, and/or expanders.
  • Patients with known radiosensitivity syndromes (e.g., Ataxia-telangiectasia) are not eligible.
  • Patients with collagen vascular disease, vasculitis, unhealed surgical sites, or breast infections are not eligible.
  • Patients whose baseline blood tests meet the following criteria are not eligible: greater than or equal to Grade 2 change Hemoglobin (i.e., 25% decrease from baseline); greater than or equal to Grade 1 change in Platelets (i.e., less than 75,000/mm3); greater than or equal to Grade 2 change in PT and PTT(i.e., 1.5-2x upper level normal (ULN)); greater than or equal to Grade 1 change in AST, ALT (i.e., greater than 2.5x ULN); greater than or equal to Grade 1 change in Bilirubin (i.e., greater than 1.5x ULN); greater than or equal to Grade 1 change in Creatinine (i.e., greater than 2x ULN).

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • University of Rochester Medical Center & Wilmot Cancer Center

    Rochester, New York, 14642

Other trials in United States

About this study

Ionizing radiation is a toxic agent and widely accepted form of treatment for various types of cancer. Despite advances in medical technology, radiation therapy still causes severe early and late skin effects. Radiation-induced dermatitis occurs in approximately 80% of patients. Important consequences of radiation-induced dermatitis include impairment of the quality of a patient's life due to pain and premature interruption of radiation treatment, which in turn, may be impair good local control of disease. The biological pathways responsible for acute radiation-induced dermatitis remain unclear. Currently, there is no standard treatment for the prevention of radiation-induced dermatitis with demonstrated effectiveness. The aim of this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study is to assess the effectiveness of curcumin for the prevention of acute radiation-induced dermatitis during postoperative radiotherapy for breast cancer. We hypothesize that curcumin, a natural phenolic compound found in both turmeric and curry powders, can prevent or alleviate radiation-induced skin reactions in breast cancer patients receiving radiotherapy.

Read the detailed description

Specifically, this clinical pilot study will develop data necessary to calculate a sample size for a larger study to be conducted through the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Community Clinical Oncology Program (CCOP) mechanism. Specifically, this pilot project will investigate: 1) if curcumin can prevent or alleviate radiation-induced skin reactions in cancer patients receiving radiotherapy and 2) if skin pigmentation, as well as pain and psychophysiological factors, can predict the severity of radiation-induced dermatitis. Potential future research studies may be conducted to identify the biological mechanisms involved in radiation-induced dermatitis and the radioprotective function of curcumin.

Conditions
Breast Cancer
Being tested
Curcumin C3 Complex, Placebo
Keywords
Radiation dermatitis in breast cancer patients
Medical subject headings
Breast Neoplasms

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Curcumin C3 ComplexDrug

    Also called Curcumin; curcuminoids

    Patients take 2.0 grams curcumin (four 500mg capsules) three times daily by mouth for prescribed course of radiation treatment (~4-7 weeks)

  • PlaceboDrug

    Also called dicalcium phosphate with yellow food grade dye

    Patients take 2.0 grams placebo (four 500mg capsules) three times daily by mouth for prescribed course of radiation treatment (~4-7 weeks)

Study groups in NCT01042938
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Curcumin C3 ComplexActive comparatorPatients take 2.0 grams curcumin (four 500mg capsules) three times daily by mouth for prescribed course of radiation treatment (~4-7 weeks).
Receives: Drug: Curcumin C3 Complex
PlaceboPlacebo comparatorPatients take 2.0 grams placebo (four 500mg capsules) three times daily by mouth for prescribed course of radiation treatment (~4-7 weeks).
Receives: Drug: Placebo

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Severity of Dermatitis in Radiation Treatment Site in Breast Cancer Patients

    The severity of radiation dermatitis was measured using the Radiation Dermatitis Severity (RDS)Scale which ranges from 0.0 to 4.0 with increments of 0.5. The RDS scale is a revised form of the NIH Common Toxicity Criteria to account for color and subtle texture changes in the skin. The worst dermatitis (i.e., highest RDS score) at the end of treatment was used for the primary analysis of severity of radiation dermatitis in each treatment group. Additionally, we performed repeated measure analyses to examine the severity of dermatitis over time in each arm.

    Measured: 4-7 weeks (prescribed course of radiation)

Secondary outcomes (3)
  1. Moist Desquamation at Radiation Treatment Site

    The presence of moist desquamation at the end of radiation treatment was examined between curcumin and placebo treatment groups. We compared the number of participants (or percentage) with moist desquamation between each treatment group.

    Measured: 4-7 weeks (prescribed course of radiation)

  2. Redness at Radiation Treatment Site

    Redness at radiation treatment site was measured using a CR-400 Colorimeter (Konica Minolta). The colorimeter uses the L*a*b* color scale. We used a* values (redness) which range from 0.0 to 20.0. The lower the number value, the lower amount of redness. Therefore, high number values represent large amounts of redness.

    Measured: 4-7 weeks (prescribed course of radiation)

  3. Pain at Radiation Treatment Site

    The McGill Pain Questionnaire-Short Form (MPQ-SF) was used to determine the participants pain at treatment site. The MPQ-SF contains three subscales: affective pain, sensory pain, and perceived pain. This outcome measure compared the total pain score (range 0 to 50)and subscale scores (sensory subscale range 0 to 33; affective subscale range 0 to 12; perceived pain subscale 0 to 5) at the end of radiation therapy between the two treatment arms.

    Measured: 4-7 weeks (prescribed course of radiation)

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted6 Jan 2010 (estimated)
  2. Study startJan 2008
  3. Primary completionSep 2010
  4. Study completionApr 2011

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
Quadruple blind
Who is masked
Participant, Care provider, Investigator, Outcomes assessor
Enrolment
35 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT01042938
Sponsor's protocol ID
URCC1106
Other IDs
5KL2RR024136-03, 05-238-80
Status last verified
Jun 2012
First submitted
4 Jan 2010
Last updated
25 Jun 2012
Data monitoring committee
Yes

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 2 study testing Curcumin C3 Complex in people with Breast Cancer, run by University of Rochester at 1 site in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 14 inclusion and 8 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 25 Jun 2012. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. Some participants in this study may receive a placebo. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

What does this phase mean?

Phase 2 studies give the treatment to a larger group to see whether it has the intended effect and to keep checking safety.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

Yes. Results are posted in the registry (first posted 20 Jun 2012). A summary is in the For doctors view, and the full results are on ClinicalTrials.gov.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Severity of Dermatitis in Radiation Treatment Site in Breast Cancer Patients (time frame: 4-7 weeks (prescribed course of radiation)). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 25 Jun 2012.

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