Skip to content
← Study library

NCT02633202 · CITED IN SOURCE DOCUMENTS

Concurrent Chemotherapy for the Intermediate Risk Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma In Intensity-modulated Radiotherapy Era

An NCI or FDA source cites this study. A citation does not establish that it applies to an individual diagnosis.

Phase
PHASE3
Status at capture
COMPLETED
Registry last update
2026-04-24

Currently, concurrent chemoradiotherapy with/without sequential chemotherapy is the standard treatment modality for intermediate risk NPC (stage II and T3N0M0) according to the National Comprehensive Cancer Network guideline. However these recommendations were based on the evidence in the two-dimensional conventional radiotherapy (2DCRT) era. The introduction of intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) in NPC treatment has brought substantial better treatment outcomes than 2DCRT. It has been questioned whether additional concurrent chemotherapy is still necessary for intermediate risk NPC within the excellent framework of IMRT. Thus, the investigators jointly conduct the first non-inferior randomized trial to determine the value of concurrent chemotherapy with cisplatin for intermediate risk NPC patients treated with IMRT. Given the results of clinical studies mentioned above,the investigators decide to adopt the concurrent regimen to be cisplatin 100 mg/m2 on day 1, 22, 43

Open the original ClinicalTrials.gov record → · Download preserved record

What did the study report?

Outcomes, safety and baseline populations are separate source sections. Quality-of-life measures appear under their original outcome titles.

No posted result sections were captured. Registered plans do not establish that a treatment works.

Who could take part
eligibility Criteria
Inclusion Criteria: * Patients with newly histologically confirmed non-keratinizing (according to WHO histologically type. * Tumor staged as T1-2N1/T2-3N0(according to the 7th AJCC edition). * No evidence of distant metastasis (M0). * Satisfactory performance status: Karnofsky scale (KPS) ≥ 70. * Adequate marrow: leucocyte count ≥ 4000/μL, hemoglobin ≥ 120g/L for male, ≥ 120g/L for female , and platelet count ≥ 100000/μL. * Normal liver function test: Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT), Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST) \< 1.5×upper limit of normal (ULN) concomitant with alkaline phosphatase (ALP) ≤ 2.5×ULN, and bilirubin ≤ ULN. * Adequate renal function: creatinine clearance ≥ 60 ml/min. * Patients must be informed of the investigational nature of this study and give written informed consent. Exclusion Criteria: * Neck lymph node with extracapsular spread. Maximal axial diameter of neck lymph node ≥30mm, positive neck lymph node at level IV and/or Vb. * Pretreatment plasma EBV DNA level ≥4000 copy/ml. * WHO Type keratinizing squamous cell carcinoma or basaloid squamous cell carcinoma. * Age \> 65 or \< 18. * Treatment with palliative intent. * Prior malignancy except adequately treated basal cell or squamous cell skin cancer, in situ cervical cancer. * Pregnancy or lactation (consider pregnancy test in women of child-bearing age and emphasize effective contraception during the treatment period). * History of previous RT (except for non-melanomatous skin cancers outside intended RT treatment volume). * Prior chemotherapy or surgery (except diagnostic) to primary tumor or nodes. * Any severe intercurrent disease, which may bring unacceptable risk or affect the compliance of the trial, for example, unstable cardiac disease requiring treatment, renal disease, chronic hepatitis, diabetes with poor control (fasting plasma glucose \> 1.5×ULN), and emotional disturbance
healthy Volunteers
false
maximum Age
65 Years
minimum Age
18 Years
sex
ALL
std Ages
  1. ADULT
  2. OLDER_ADULT
Treatment arms and interventions
arm Groups
  1. description
    intensity modulated-radiotherapy (IMRT) alone: Patients receive intensity modulated-radiotherapy (IMRT) alone
    intervention Names
    1. Radiation: IMRT
    label
    RT group
    type
    EXPERIMENTAL
  2. description
    IMRT and concurrent cisplatin Patients receive intensity modulated-radiotherapy (IMRT), concurrently with cisplatin 100 mg/m² every 3 weeks for 3 cycles
    intervention Names
    1. Radiation: IMRT
    2. Drug: Cisplatin
    label
    CCRT group
    type
    ACTIVE_COMPARATOR
interventions
  1. arm Group Labels
    1. CCRT group
    2. RT group
    description
    Intensity modulated-radiotherapy (IMRT) is given as 2.0-2.20 Gy per fraction with five daily fractions per week for 6-7 weeks to a total dose of 66 Gy or greater to the primary tumor
    name
    IMRT
    other Names
    1. Intensity-modulated radiation therapy
    type
    RADIATION
  2. arm Group Labels
    1. CCRT group
    description
    concurrently with cisplatin 100 mg/m² every 3 weeks for 3 cycles during IMRT
    name
    Cisplatin
    other Names
    1. Concurrent cisplatin regimen
    type
    DRUG
Study design
allocation
RANDOMIZED
intervention Model
PARALLEL
masking Info
masking
NONE
primary Purpose
TREATMENT
Enrollment
count
338
type
ACTUAL
Registered outcome plans (not posted results)
primary Outcomes
  1. description
    The failure-free survival rate will be estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method for each arm from the date of randomization to the date of treatment failure or death from any cause, whichever is first. Their differences will be compared between treatment arms using the log-rank test.
    measure
    Failure-free survival
    time Frame
    3 Year
secondary Outcomes
  1. description
    The overall survival rate will be estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method for each arm from randomization to death from any cause. Their differences will be compared between treatment arms using the log-rank test.
    measure
    Overall survival
    time Frame
    3 Year
  2. description
    The locoregional failure-free survival will be estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method for each arm from randomization to the first locoregional failure. Their differences will be compared between treatment arms using the log-rank test.
    measure
    Locoregional failure-free survival
    time Frame
    3 Year
  3. description
    The distant failure-free survival will be estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method for each arm from randomization to the first remote failure. Their differences will be compared between treatment arms using the log-rank test.
    measure
    Distant failure-free survival
    time Frame
    3 Year
  4. description
    Acute and late toxicities will be documented according to the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events version 3.0 and/or the Radiation Morbidity Scoring Criteria of the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group. Rates of the toxicities will be estimated using a binomial distribution along and will be compared using Fisher's exact test between the 2 treatment arms.
    measure
    Rates of participants with adverse events
    time Frame
    3 Year
Full study description
brief Summary
Currently, concurrent chemoradiotherapy with/without sequential chemotherapy is the standard treatment modality for intermediate risk NPC (stage II and T3N0M0) according to the National Comprehensive Cancer Network guideline. However these recommendations were based on the evidence in the two-dimensional conventional radiotherapy (2DCRT) era. The introduction of intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) in NPC treatment has brought substantial better treatment outcomes than 2DCRT. It has been questioned whether additional concurrent chemotherapy is still necessary for intermediate risk NPC within the excellent framework of IMRT. Thus, the investigators jointly conduct the first non-inferior randomized trial to determine the value of concurrent chemotherapy with cisplatin for intermediate risk NPC patients treated with IMRT. Given the results of clinical studies mentioned above,the investigators decide to adopt the concurrent regimen to be cisplatin 100 mg/m2 on day 1, 22, 43
detailed Description
Currently, concurrent chemoradiotherapy with/without sequential chemotherapy is the standard treatment modality for intermediate risk NPC (stage II and T3N0M0) according to the National Comprehensive Cancer Network guideline. However these recommendations were based on the evidence in the two-dimensional conventional radiotherapy (2DCRT) era. The introduction of intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) in NPC treatment has brought substantial better treatment outcomes than 2DCRT. It has been questioned whether additional concurrent chemotherapy is still necessary for intermediate risk NPC within the excellent framework of IMRT. Thus, the investigators jointly conduct the first non-inferior randomized trial to determine the value of concurrent chemotherapy with cisplatin for intermediate risk NPC patients treated with IMRT. Given the results of clinical studies mentioned above, the investigators decide to adopt the concurrent regimen to be cisplatin 100 mg/m2 on day 1, 22, 43
Source references
references
  1. citation
    Chua DT, Sham JS, Kwong DL, Au GK. Treatment outcome after radiotherapy alone for patients with Stage I-II nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Cancer. 2003 Jul 1;98(1):74-80. doi: 10.1002/cncr.11485.
    pmid
    12833458
    type
    BACKGROUND
  2. citation
    Xiao WW, Han F, Lu TX, Chen CY, Huang Y, Zhao C. Treatment outcomes after radiotherapy alone for patients with early-stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2009 Jul 15;74(4):1070-6. doi: 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2008.09.008. Epub 2009 Feb 21.
    pmid
    19231110
    type
    BACKGROUND
  3. citation
    Chen QY, Wen YF, Guo L, Liu H, Huang PY, Mo HY, Li NW, Xiang YQ, Luo DH, Qiu F, Sun R, Deng MQ, Chen MY, Hua YJ, Guo X, Cao KJ, Hong MH, Qian CN, Mai HQ. Concurrent chemoradiotherapy vs radiotherapy alone in stage II nasopharyngeal carcinoma: phase III randomized trial. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2011 Dec 7;103(23):1761-70. doi: 10.1093/jnci/djr432. Epub 2011 Nov 4.
    pmid
    22056739
    type
    BACKGROUND
  4. citation
    Song CH, Wu HG, Heo DS, Kim KH, Sung MW, Park CI. Treatment outcomes for radiotherapy alone are comparable with neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by radiotherapy in early-stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Laryngoscope. 2008 Apr;118(4):663-70. doi: 10.1097/MLG.0b013e3181626cfe.
    pmid
    18216741
    type
    BACKGROUND
  5. citation
    Chua DT, Ma J, Sham JS, Mai HQ, Choy DT, Hong MH, Lu TX, Au GK, Min HQ. Improvement of survival after addition of induction chemotherapy to radiotherapy in patients with early-stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma: Subgroup analysis of two Phase III trials. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2006 Aug 1;65(5):1300-6. doi: 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2006.02.016. Epub 2006 Jun 5.
    pmid
    16750333
    type
    BACKGROUND
  6. citation
    Xu T, Hu C, Wang X, Shen C. Role of chemoradiotherapy in intermediate prognosis nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Oral Oncol. 2011 May;47(5):408-13. doi: 10.1016/j.oraloncology.2011.03.008. Epub 2011 Apr 2.
    pmid
    21459659
    type
    BACKGROUND
  7. citation
    Lai SZ, Li WF, Chen L, Luo W, Chen YY, Liu LZ, Sun Y, Lin AH, Liu MZ, Ma J. How does intensity-modulated radiotherapy versus conventional two-dimensional radiotherapy influence the treatment results in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients? Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2011 Jul 1;80(3):661-8. doi: 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2010.03.024. Epub 2010 Jul 17.
    pmid
    20643517
    type
    BACKGROUND
  8. citation
    Peng G, Wang T, Yang KY, Zhang S, Zhang T, Li Q, Han J, Wu G. A prospective, randomized study comparing outcomes and toxicities of intensity-modulated radiotherapy vs. conventional two-dimensional radiotherapy for the treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Radiother Oncol. 2012 Sep;104(3):286-93. doi: 10.1016/j.radonc.2012.08.013. Epub 2012 Sep 17.
    pmid
    22995588
    type
    BACKGROUND
  9. citation
    Lee AW, Ng WT, Chan LL, Hung WM, Chan CC, Sze HC, Chan OS, Chang AT, Yeung RM. Evolution of treatment for nasopharyngeal cancer--success and setback in the intensity-modulated radiotherapy era. Radiother Oncol. 2014 Mar;110(3):377-84. doi: 10.1016/j.radonc.2014.02.003. Epub 2014 Mar 11.
    pmid
    24630534
    type
    BACKGROUND
  10. citation
    Su SF, Han F, Zhao C, Chen CY, Xiao WW, Li JX, Lu TX. Long-term outcomes of early-stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients treated with intensity-modulated radiotherapy alone. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2012 Jan 1;82(1):327-33. doi: 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2010.09.011. Epub 2010 Oct 29.
    pmid
    21035959
    type
    BACKGROUND
  11. citation
    Tham IW, Lin S, Pan J, Han L, Lu JJ, Wee J. Intensity-modulated radiation therapy without concurrent chemotherapy for stage IIb nasopharyngeal cancer. Am J Clin Oncol. 2010 Jun;33(3):294-9. doi: 10.1097/COC.0b013e3181d2edab.
    pmid
    20395788
    type
    BACKGROUND
  12. citation
    Luo S, Zhao L, Wang J, Xu M, Li J, Zhou B, Xiao F, Long X, Shi M. Clinical outcomes for early-stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma with predominantly WHO II histology treated by intensity-modulated radiation therapy with or without chemotherapy in nonendemic region of China. Head Neck. 2014 Jun;36(6):841-7. doi: 10.1002/hed.23386. Epub 2013 Oct 4.
    pmid
    23720240
    type
    BACKGROUND
Source notices and limitations
    Discovery and provenance
    1. release id
      ctgov-registry-7ad944f6deaf1f5cd6122126
      edge id
      nct-edge-f53c4809051d4b7aed45
      requested nct id
      NCT02633202
      primary nct id
      NCT02633202
      source kind
      nci_explicit_reference_or_link
      source record id
      Source null
      source file sha256
      22249f9dfb113a75d2737baf5f4f60b9034105431bdd29d75cada48fbfc237d3
      payload sha256
      d23134547507bb696c2790eae2a4bdce40a08b3dc14314599f1354483aadcabd
      payload
      clinical indication matching status
      not_inferred
      end exclusive
      true
      id
      nct-edge-f53c4809051d4b7aed45
      link basis
      explicit_NCT_identifier_in_acquired_source
      nct id
      NCT02633202
      occurrences
      1. context exact
        ence (radiation therapy):</p> <div class="pdq-content-list"><ol id="_949"><li> A multicenter, noninferiority, phase III trial (<a href="/clinicaltrials/NCT02633202">NCT02633202</a>) evaluated radiation therapy alone versus chemoradiation therapy for patients with low-risk, stage II, T3, N0, M0 (American Joint Committee on
        end
        91421
        exact text
        NCT02633202
        start
        91410
      2. context exact
        on therapy):</p> <div class="pdq-content-list"><ol id="_949"><li> A multicenter, noninferiority, phase III trial (<a href="/clinicaltrials/NCT02633202">NCT02633202</a>) evaluated radiation therapy alone versus chemoradiation therapy for patients with low-risk, stage II, T3, N0, M0 (American Joint Committee on Cancer 7th e
        end
        91434
        exact text
        NCT02633202
        start
        91423
      offset unit
      unicode_code_points
      source file
      /tmp/cancer-full-research/nci/raw/2a3d60f340501462a6.html
      source file sha256
      22249f9dfb113a75d2737baf5f4f60b9034105431bdd29d75cada48fbfc237d3
      source json pointer
      Source null
      source kind
      nci_explicit_reference_or_link
      source record id
      Source null
      source retrieved at
      2026-09-09T23:21:46.472700+00:00
      source string basis
      UTF-8_text_with_universal_newline_translation
      source string sha256
      bfa3ee8377da4feee5d4f35fc70d9e173f5d85ecb258850ef4e17a7361ce2f9f
      source title
      Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Treatment (PDQ®)–Health Professional Version
      source update dates
      1. context
        Updated: May 14, 2025
        datetime
        2025-05-14T12:00:00Z
        display
        May 14, 2025

    Preserved source evidence · Not medical advice