Electroacupuncture for the Prevention of Chemotherapy-induced Nausea and Vomiting in Patients With Breast Cancer

Official title

A Study on Electroacupuncture Combined With Olanzapine-contained Four-drug Antiemetic Therapy for the Prevention of Highly Emetogenic Chemotherapy-induced Nausea and Vomiting in Patients With Breast Cancer (ECO Study)

Overview

This randomized controlled phase III trial aims to evaluate the use of electroacupuncture in combination with olanzapine-containing standard quadruple antiemetic drugs for the treatment of nausea and vomiting induced by highly emetogenic chemotherapy (HEC) in patients with breast cancer. Furthermore, it will analyze the relationship between single nucleotide polymorphism and electroacupuncture treatment for chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting.

Detailed description

This study is a parallel-group, blinded (participants, evaluators, and statisticians), randomized controlled trial exploring the effectiveness of electroacupuncture combined with standard quadruple antiemetic drugs for breast cancer patients undergoing HEC. Both groups will receive Olanzapine, Neurokinin-1 receptor antagonists (NK-1RAs), serotonin receptor antagonists \[5HT3RA\], and dexamethasone at the start of HEC on Day 1. Electroacupuncture or sham acupuncture will be randomly administered to each group. Participants will document all instances of nausea and vomiting and note the use of rescue antiemetic medications. Blood samples will be collected and analyzed to investigate whether genetic polymorphisms can predict electroacupuncture outcomes in breast cancer patients undergoing HEC. Primary and secondary outcomes as well as adverse events will be assessed.

Interventions

• Device Electroacupuncture
  The acupuncturists will insert needles into the acupoints and manipulate the needles until"de qi"sensation is achieved and reported by the participants. Electrical stimulation will be delivered for 30 minutes at alternating frequencies of 2/10Hz.
• Drug Standard antiemetic treatment
  Olanzapine 2.5 mg per day orally on days 1 through 4 + fosaprepitant 150 mg intravenous (IV) or aprepitant injectable emulsion 130 mg IV + palonosetron 0.25 mg IV or ondansetron 8 mg IV or tropisetron 5 mg IV (the previously mentioned medication, which includes fosaprepitant or aprepitant combined with palonosetron or ondansetron or tropisetron, can also be taken orally in a fixed combination of netupitant (300 mg) and palonosetron (0.50 mg))+ dexamethasone 10 mg IV 30 minutes prior to chemother
• Device Sham electroacupuncture
  The sham acupuncture comprised a core standardized prescription of minimally invasive, shallow needle insertion using thin and short needles at body locations not recognized as true acupuncture points and are deemed to not belong to traditional Chinese meridians and have no therapeutic value. Participants will receive minimal acupuncture treatment without electrical stimulation at the same time as the intervention group.Care was taken to avoid "de qi" sensation.
• Drug Standard antiemetic treatment
  Olanzapine 2.5 mg per day orally on days 1 through 4 + fosaprepitant 150 mg intravenous (IV) or aprepitant injectable emulsion 130 mg IV + palonosetron 0.25 mg IV or ondansetron 8 mg IV or tropisetron 5 mg IV (the previously mentioned medication, which includes fosaprepitant or aprepitant combined with palonosetron or ondansetron or tropisetron, can also be taken orally in a fixed combination of netupitant (300 mg) and palonosetron (0.50 mg))+ dexamethasone 10 mg IV 30 minutes prior to chemother

Primary outcome measures

• Proportion of patients with no nausea during the overall stage [Time frame: 120 hours]

Secondary outcome measures (12)

• Proportion of patients with no nausea during the early stage [Time frame: 24 hours]
• Proportion of patients with no nausea during the delayed stage [Time frame: 96 hours]
• The relationship between single nucleotide polymorphism genotypes and the proportion of patients with no nausea [Time frame: 120 hours]
• The proportion of patients achieving total control in the overall stage, the early stage (0 to 24 hours), and the delayed stage (25 to 120 hours). [Time frame: 120 hours]
• The proportion of patients achieving complete protection in the overall stage, the early stage (0 to 24 hours), and the delayed stage (25 to 120 hours) [Time frame: 120 hours]
• The proportion of no significant nausea in the overall stage, the early stage (0 to 24 hours), and the delayed stage (25 to 120 hours) [Time frame: 120 hours]
• The proportion of no nausea (Visual Analog Scale score < 5) in the overall stage, the early stage (0 to 24 hours), and the delayed stage (25 to 120 hours) [Time frame: 120 hours]
• The proportion of patients achieving complete response in the overall stage, the early stage (0 to 24 hours), and the delayed stage (25 to 120 hours) [Time frame: 120 hours]
• Quality of life in the overall stage [Time frame: 120 hours]
• Insomnia [Time frame: 120 hours]
• Fatigue [Time frame: 120 hours]
• Constipation [Time frame: 120 hours]

Eligibility criteria

Inclusion criteria

• Aged 18 years or older and aged 75 years or younger, of any nationality;
• Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0-2;
• Patients with breast cancer, with no restrictions on molecular typing; early-stage patients must not have undergone prior chemotherapy, while advanced-stage patients must be candidates for first-line chemotherapy and have declined neoadjuvant or adjuvant chemotherapy for over 3 months. All patients must receive highly emetogenic chemotherapy (HEC) based on anthracycline chemotherapy with cyclophosphamide (EC or AC) or carboplatin (AUC≥4)/cisplatin;
• Predicted life expectancy of ≥3 months;
• Adequate bone marrow, kidney, and liver function;
• Adequate contraception if premenopausal women;
• Written informed consent by the patient before enrolment.

Exclusion criteria

• Patients already submitted to chemotherapy;
• Is scheduled to receive any non-HEC on Day 1;
• Is scheduled to receive any chemotherapy on days 2-4 after HEC;
• Received or is scheduled to receive radiation therapy to the abdomen, pelvis, head and neck within 1 week prior to Day 1 or between Days 1 to 5 in cycle 1;
• Has symptomatic primary or metastatic symptomatic central nervous system malignancy causing nausea and/or vomiting;
• Have ongoing emesis or CTCAE grade 2 or greater nausea;
• Significant medical or mental conditions;
• Any allergies to study drug, antiemetics or dexamethasone;
• Significantly abnormal laboratory values (platelets, coagulation indexes, absolute neutrophils, AST, ALT, bilirubin or creatinine);
• Patients who are pregnant or breast-feeding;
• Inflammatory skin reaction;
• Has lymphedema in acupuncture stimulation area;
• Patients who are afraid of electroacupuncture stimulation or allergic to stainless steel needles;
• Received acupuncture treatments for any conditions less than 4 weeks before HEC;
• Currently using drugs with antiemetic activity (e.g., 5-HT3 receptor antagonists, corticosteroids (except when used at physiological doses), dopamine receptor antagonists, minor tranquilizers, antihistamines, and benzodiazepines (except for nocturnal sedation));
• Patients with concomitant severe diseases or with a predisposition to emesis such as gastrointestinal obstruction, active peptic ulcer, and hypercalcemia and symptomatic brain metastasis;
• Has a convulsive disorder requiring anticonvulsant treatment;
• Patients administered thioridazine as a chronic antipsychotic medication (patients are allowed to receive prochlorperazine and other phenothiazines as a rescue antiemetic treatment);
• Concurrent treatment with quinolone antibiotics;
• Has a history of chronic alcoholism (determined by the investigator);
• Known arrhythmias, uncontrolled congestive heart failure, or acute myocardial infarction within the past six months;
• Has a history of uncontrolled diabetes (e.g., using insulin or oral hypoglycemic agents).

Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.

Healthy volunteers: Yes

Study design

Allocation

Randomized

Model

Parallel assignment

Masking

Triple blind

Primary purpose

Treatment

Study locations

China · 1 center

• Qinghai University Affiliated Hospital — Xining

Identifiers

NCT: NCT06200168 · AHQU-2023002

Primary sources (government registries)

• ClinicalTrials.gov (US NIH)

View this study on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗