The Oncology Clinical Trials team has recently opened a new study (NRG BN001) to enrollment. We're pleased to share this accomplishment for our department!   

As you can see here, on page 3 of the NRG newsletter in the "Shout Out to Sites" section, Intermountain Medical Center is listed as one of the first sites to provide IRB approval for the study. 

NRG BN001 is a randomized phase II trial of hypofractionated dose-escalated photon IMRT or proton beam therapy versus conventional photon irradiation with concomitant and adjuvant temozolomide in patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma.

The purpose of this study is to compare a different radiation therapy schedule and higher radiation dose [higher dose group] to the standard dose of radiation therapy [standard dose group]. This is a two arm study in which both groups will receive the usual chemotherapy, temozolomide. The higher radiotherapy dose could shrink the cancer, but it could also cause side effects. This study will allow researchers to know whether this higher dose is better, the same, or worse than the usual approach. To be better, the study should increase life by six months or more compared to the usual approach.

Two methods of giving radiation therapy will also be compared. They are proton beam radiation and intensity-modulated radiation.

People who are not in a study are usually treated with radiation and temozolomide followed by temozolomide alone. For patients who receive the usual approach for this cancer, about 4 out of 100 are free of cancer growth at five years.

Dr. Grant Hunter at Intermountain Medical Center is the principal investigator for Intermountain Healthcare on this study. The trial is open statewide. The Oncology Clinical Trials Executive Counsel fully supports the study to give patients with glioblastomas options for their cancer care.

I am pretty proud of my team and this is a wonderful accomplishment for us!