SWOG-8814 Tamoxifen With or Without Combination Chemotherapy in Postmenopausal Women Who Have Undergone Surgery for Breast Cancer

Breast Cancer Clinical Trial

Official title: Phase III Comparison of Adjuvant Chemoendocrine Therapy With CAF and Concurrent or Delayed Tamoxifen to Tamoxifen Alone in Postmenopausal Patients With Involved Axillary Lymph Nodes and Positive Receptors

Status Completed

Clinical Trial Summary

RATIONALE: Estrogen can cause the growth of breast cancer cells. Hormone therapy using tamoxifen may fight breast cancer by blocking the use of estrogen by the tumor cells. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, and fluorouracil, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. It is not yet known whether giving tamoxifen alone is more effective in treating breast cancer than giving tamoxifen together with chemotherapy or after chemotherapy.

PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is studying giving tamoxifen with or without combination chemotherapy to compare how well they work in treating postmenopausal women who have undergone surgery for breast cancer.

Clinical Trial Description

OBJECTIVES: I. Compare disease-free survival and overall survival of postmenopausal women with node-positive, estrogen and/or progesterone receptor-positive adenocarcinoma of the breast randomly assigned to postoperative adjuvant treatment with long-term (5 years) tamoxifen vs. CAF (cyclophosphamide/doxorubicin/fluorouracil) plus concurrent and long-term tamoxifen vs. CAF followed by long-term tamoxifen. II. Compare the relative toxicities of these three regimens.

OUTLINE: Randomized study. All patients are randomized on Arms I, II, and III. Lumpectomy patients must receive radiotherapy on Regimen A. At the discretion of the physician, mastectomy patients may receive radiotherapy on Regimen B for a tumor greater than 5 cm in diameter, 4 or more positive nodes, or extranodal extension of the tumor into the axillary fat. Patients randomized to Arm I who are to receive radiotherapy should begin as soon as feasible postoperatively; these patients may be irradiated while receiving tamoxifen. Patients on Arms II and III who are to receive radiotherapy are treated either postoperatively prior to registration or after completion of and recovery from 6 courses of CAF. Arm I: Antiestrogen Therapy. Tamoxifen, TMX, NSC-180973. Arm II: 3-Drug Combination Chemotherapy followed by Antiestrogen Therapy. CAF: Cyclophosphamide, CTX, NSC-26271; Doxorubicin, DOX, NSC-123127; Fluorouracil, 5-FU, NSC-19893; followed by TMX. Arm III: 3-Drug Combination Chemotherapy plus Concurrent Antiestrogen Therapy. CAF; plus concurrent TMX. Regimen A: Radiotherapy. Irradiation of the breast and underlying chest wall and (optionally) of the supraclavicular area and, if indicated, the axilla, using megavoltage equipment with photon energies of up to 6 MV followed, if indicated, by a tumor bed boost using either electrons or iridium-192 (192-Ir) implants. Regimen B: Radiotherapy. Irradiation of the chest wall using either megavoltage photons via a tangential field or electrons via a direct field plus (optional) photon irradiation of the supraclavicular area and, if indicated, the axilla.

PROJECTED ACCRUAL: 350 patients will be randomized to Arm I and 530 patients each will be randomized to Arms II and III. Accrual should be completed in about 4 years, and 4 additional years will be required for follow-up. ;

Study Design

Allocation: Randomized, Endpoint Classification: Safety/Efficacy Study, Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment, Masking: Open Label, Primary Purpose: Treatment

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Breast Cancer
• Breast Neoplasms

• NCT number: NCT00929591
• Study type: Interventional
• Source: Southwest Oncology Group
• Status: Completed
• Phase: Phase 3
• Start date: May 1989
• Completion date: March 2010