Description

Despite major technological advancements in the delivery of pelvic radiation therapy including the use of dynamic therapy, image guidance, integrated boosting and stereotactic techniques, toxicity from pelvic radiation remains a significant issue impacting on patient's quality of life and preventing the delivery of higher (and more curative) doses of radiation. Although evidence showed that adaptive radiotherapy demonstrating promising reduction of acute toxicity, the uptake of adaptive radiotherapy remains poor as adaptive radiation therapy is very labour intensive, time consuming and usually requires a radiation oncologist (RO) and Medical Physicist in attendance to review/modify target contours. These practices of daily multi-disciplinary team (MDT) in person attendance is not sustainable in the long term.

Since 2021, Royal North Shore Hospital has been treating patients with cancer in the pelvic with Adaptive Radiation Therapy (ART) and Radiation Therapists (RT) at the site have undergone a rigorous University based Advanced Practitioner training programme.

This study aims to evaluate RT-led ART in a randomised trial to assess the safety and feasibility of ART in a two stage phase 3 randomised controlled trial. If this study can prove safety and feasibility in the first phase, it will proceed to the second phase of the study which will look at using adaptive radiotherapy to safely reduce CTV and PTV margins.

The primary aim of the study will be to measure the difference in combined acute patient reported gastrointestinal (GI) and genitourinary (GU) toxicity between ART with margin reduction versus standard radiotherapy. Secondary aims will be to look at differences in biochemical failure, the time efficiency of ART, the radiation dosimetric differences between the treatment arms and patients' perception of ART.