VALUE
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Understanding the variation of modern endoscopic ultrasound use in patients with oesophageal cancer (VALUE): a multi-methods study
IRAS ID
323170
Contact name
Benjamin Lindfield
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University Hospital Southampton NHS Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 2 months, 30 days
Research summary
Patients with cancer of the gullet (oesophagus) have poor survival and cases are increasing. Just 1 in 10 patients are alive 5 years after diagnosis because the cancer often spreads to other body parts. Doctors rely on scans to assess the extent of disease (staging) and plan treatment. Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS), involves a camera being inserted through the mouth into the oesophagus allowing detailed assessment of nearby organs and glands. The way that oesophageal cancer staging happens however, has changed considerably over the past two decades and a PET scan is now used changing the way patients are selected for treatment prompting questions about the usefulness of EUS.
VALUE will evaluate how EUS is used and how EUS impacts patient care by addressing two important questions:
1) How often does EUS change the decision about which treatment a patient should receive?
2) Can we identify important factors that doctors and patients think about when deciding whether to use EUS?
VALUE will recruit 180 patients who are being staged for treatment for oesophageal cancer, from eight UK NHS oesophageal cancer centres. All procedures will be standard care. This study will collect different types of data.
First, we will record how often EUS changes treatment decisions by asking doctors to record the best treatment plan for each patient, before knowing the results of the EUS, then recording any changes with the new information that EUS provides. This will help us understand how effective EUS is.
Second, we will invite patients and doctors to complete interviews about their thoughts and experiences regarding EUS. We hope to use this information to better understand how and why decisions about EUS are made, and in whom EUS might be most effective. The study will last for 3 years each patient being involved for up to 6mths.REC name
West of Scotland REC 3
REC reference
24/WS/0021
Date of REC Opinion
25 Mar 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion