Off-therapy surveillance for rhabdomyosarcoma and outcomes
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Does off-therapy surveillance for rhabdomyosarcoma lead to earlier detection of tumour relapse and thereby to better outcome?
IRAS ID
210474
Contact name
Madeleine Adams
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
The KiKa Foundation (Children Cancer Free)
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 3 months, 1 days
Research summary
Rhabdomyosarcoma is the commonest soft tissue sarcoma in children. Current treatment strategies include
intensive chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery. Patients are often treated within a clinical trial. In Europe children are treated
according to protocols and trials developed by the European paediatric Soft Tissue Sarcoma Study Group (EpSSG).
Despite current treatments, up to one third of children with rhabdomyosarcoma will relapse and when this occurs
treatment is often difficult and survival rates poor.
Currently all patients who complete treatment are subjected to intensive follow up surveillance scans to detect relapse, should it occur. These scans are planned to occur every 3-4 months for 3 years after treatment finishes. A recent study in patients
In other children’s cancers (Wilms Tumour and Hodgkin's Lymphoma) has identified a lack of evidence that routine scanning improves
outcomes. No such studies have been carried out in patients with rhabdomyosarcoma.
Routine scanning is very expensive. It often involves general anaesthesia for young children which carries risks and
patients and their families often find the repeated scanning stressful.
The aim of this study is to retrospectively assess the casenotes of children with rhabdomyosarcoma in some European centres (including the UK) who have relapsed to assess whether those that were picked up by routine scanning (before any symptoms were present)
have better survival outcomes than those who presented to their doctor with clinical signs or symptoms of the relapse. If routine imaging does not appear to improve survival outcomes, this question will then be addressed more formally as part of a randomised trial.REC name
Wales REC 7
REC reference
17/WA/0088
Date of REC Opinion
13 Jul 2017
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion