Clinical trial · Interventional
Early Integration of Palliative Care in Esophageal Cancer Patients
Evaluation of the Implementation of an Early Integrated Palliative Care Program in the Esophageal Cancer Population
- Source
- ClinicalTrials.gov
- Retrieved
- Sep 8, 2026
- Layer
- normalized (units and labels harmonized; values unchanged)
- Run
- ING-CLINICALTRIALS-20260908-000001
Why stopped (as posted): Study futility with regards to recruitment
Summary
Brief summary (as posted)
Palliative care physicians and nurses are trained to help reduce suffering and improve quality of life in patients under their care. Their services also include other components such as referral to dietitians, social workers and community resources, to assist patients in their homes. In addition to this, they may also administer interventions to make patients more comfortable, assisting them and their families in making important decisions and providing support, during that time. At present, palliative care is provided to esophageal cancer patients on an as-needed basis, through the referral of a heath care professional or the patient's request. This study aims to assess the impact of the integration of early palliative care combined with appropriate medical care in the metastatic esophageal cancer population, so that patients can benefit from these services at an earlier stage. It is hoped that this will improve quality of life, symptom management, depression and anxiety, as well as survival.
Conditions
Conditions (1)
Free-text conditions as registered, with the CancerIndex entity they were reconciled to and the match type.
| Condition (as posted) | Mapped entity | Match | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Esophageal Cancer | Malignant Esophageal Neoplasm | CURATED_EXACT | 0.92 |
Interventions
Interventions (1)
| Intervention | Type | Mapped drug | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Early Palliative Care | Other | — | UNRESOLVED |
Design
Arms and outcomes
Arms (1)
- type
- EXPERIMENTAL
- label
- Early Palliative Care Group
- description
- This is the intervention group and will consist of patients that have been randomized into the early palliative group, with a consultation expected to take place within one week of randomization. Patients in this group will still receive appropriate guideline based oncologic care including any surgical, brachytherapy, chemotherapy or radiotherapy services, along with palliative services.
- interventionNames
- Other: Early Palliative Care
Primary outcomes (1)
- measure
- Quality Of Life
- timeFrame
- As reported by questionnaire at 12 weeks after study consent
- description
- Change in perceived quality of life as reported by esophageal cancer patients.
Secondary outcomes (5)
- measure
Eligibility
Eligibility (as posted)
- Sex
- All
Show eligibility criteria text
Inclusion Criteria: * Patients newly diagnosed or referred to the Esophageal Diagnostic Assessment Program (EDAP) program with suspicious findings found to be esophageal cancer AND * Patients who present with metastatic disease, defined as N3 lymph node involvement or distant metastatic deposits as confirmed on PET scan * Patients must have been notified by a member of their healthcare team of their prognosis and palliative categorization as noted in the patient chart within 8 weeks of diagnosis * Patients may undergo esophagectomy, stenting, brachytherapy or palliative intent chemotherapy or radiotherapy as clinically indicated Exclusion Criteria: * Individuals unable to complete questionnaires with assistance * Patients presently undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy or radiotherapy for malignancy * Patients with recurrent esophageal cancer * Patients who are referred back to EDAP for restaging after completing neoadjuvant therapy
References
Publications (0)
Data not yet available