Blood Test Tracks Tumor DNA in Head and Neck Cancer Patients After Radiotherapy
Tests whether tumor DNA in blood predicts progression in adults with advanced upper airway cancer.
Plain-language title generated from the registry record
Registry title: Prognostic Value of Measuring CtDNA in a Cohort of Patients With Stage III and IV Upper Aero-digestive Tract (UADT) Cancer , Treated With Curative RADiOtherapy With or Without Concomitant Treatment.
Key facts
- Where
- Zurich, SwitzerlandSee the site
Where in Switzerland
- University Hospital Zurich (USZ)Zurich, SwitzerlandTaking people
Questions to ask the study team
- How often do I need to come in, and for how long each time?
- Are travel costs paid?
- Can I keep my own doctor?
- What happens if I want to stop?
Trial details
- Who runs it
- Institut de Cancérologie de Lorraine
- Trial code
- NCT06479070
- Record updated
- 24 December 2025
- Original description
Squamous cell carcinomas of the upper aero-digestive tract (SCC-UADT) represent the seventh cause of cancer and affect approximately 600,000 patients per year worldwide. The majority of UADT cancers are diagnosed at an advanced stage (70.3% at stage III and IV) and less than 60% of these patients are free of the disease at 3 years, despite aggressive multimodal local treatment by surgery and /or radiochemotherapy. The average progression-free survival (PFS) at 2 years varies between 45 and 60% depending on the studies. Tumor recurrence is most often incurable. To our knowledge, no study has demonstrated the benefit of early evaluation of the rate of decrease in ctDNA at 1 month after the end of radiotherapy alone or associated with concomitant treatment, as a predictive factor of PFS in UADT squamous cell carcinomas regardless of their HPV status. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the value of measuring the quantity of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) at 1 month post-treatment as a predictive factor for PFS at 24 months.Read full original descriptionShow less
Prognostic Value of Measuring Circulating Tumor DNA in a Cohort of Patients With Stage III and IV UADT Cancer, Treated With Curative RADiOtherapy With or Without Concomitant Treatment.
Squamous cell carcinomas of the upper aero-digestive tract (SCC-UADT) represent the seventh cause of cancer and affect approximately 600,000 patients per year worldwide. The majority of UADT cancers are diagnosed at an advanced stage (70.3% at stage III and IV) and less than 60% of these patients are free of the disease at 3 years, despite aggressive multimodal local treatment by surgery and /or radiochemotherapy. The average progression-free survival (PFS) at 2 years varies between 45 and 60% depending on the studies. Tumor recurrence is most often incurable. To our knowledge, no study has demonstrated the benefit of early evaluation of the rate of decrease in ctDNA at 1 month after the end of radiotherapy alone or associated with concomitant treatment, as a predictive factor of PFS in UADT squamous cell carcinomas regardless of their HPV status. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the value of measuring the quantity of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) at 1 month post-treatment as a predictive factor for PFS at 24 months.
Inclusion: OMS 0 to 2; Patient suffering from UADT squamous cell carcinoma, newly diagnosed and histologically proven, regardless of the p16 protein status, naïve to any treatment for this cancer; Non-metastatic cancer of stages III (N1), IVa (N1 minimum) or IVb; Cancer localized in the oral cavity, larynx, oropharynx, hypopharynx and maxillary sinus; Patient for whom treatment with curative radiotherapy associated or not with concomitant treatment (Cisplatin or Cetuximab) has been validated in a multidisciplinary consultation meeting (RCP); Patient capable and willing to follow all study procedures in accordance with the protocol; Patient having understood, signed and dated the consent form communicated on the day of inclusion; Patient affiliated to the social security system.
Exclusion: Patient treated with immunotherapy; Contraindication to radiotherapy treatment associated or not with concomitant treatment; Cancer located in the cavum, ethmoidal sinus, salivary glands and skin (cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma); Patient who has already had cancer within 5 years (cancer other than in the UADT sphere); Metastatic disease (stage IVc); Minor patient; Patient already treated for UADT tumor; OMS > 2; Patient already included in another therapeutic trial; Pregnant woman, who may be pregnant, or currently breastfeeding; Persons deprived of liberty or under guardianship (including curatorship).