Clinical Trial: Radiation Therapy With or Without Combination Chemotherapy in Treating Patients With Advanced Cancer of the Oropharynx or Hypopharynx

Study Status: Recruiting
Recruit Status: Unknown status
Study Type: Interventional




Official Title: Phase III Randomized Study of Radiotherapy With or Without Cisplatin and Fluorouracil for Locally Advanced, Nonresectable Squamous Cell Cancer of the Oropharynx or Hypopha

Brief Summary:

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining chemotherapy with radiation therapy may kill more tumor cells and allow doctors to preserve the part of the body where the cancer started. It is not yet known whether radiation therapy with combination chemotherapy is more effective than radiation therapy alone in treating cancer of the oropharynx or hypopharynx that cannot be surgically removed.

PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of radiation therapy plus cisplatin and fluorouracil with radiation therapy alone in treating patients who have advanced cancer of the oropharynx or hypopharynx that cannot be surgically removed.