Clinical trial · Interventional
Randomized Study Regarding Preventive Jaw- and Swallowing Intervention for Patients With Head and Neck Cancer
Preventive Randomized Study Regarding Jaw- and Swallowing Intervention for Patients Receiving Radiotherapy for Head and Neck Cancer: the Effect of Preventive Intervention for Trismus, Swallowing Function and Quality of Life
- Source
- ClinicalTrials.gov
- Retrieved
- Sep 8, 2026
- Layer
- normalized (units and labels harmonized; values unchanged)
- Run
- ING-CLINICALTRIALS-20260908-000001
Summary
Brief summary (as posted)
The study includes patients with tumors of the oropharynx, larynx and hypopharynx scheduled to receive radiotherapy with curative intent (+/- chemotherapy). The patients will be randomized into either an intervention group (performing a preventive jaw- and swallowing exercise protocol before and during radiotherapy) or a control group no performing a exercise protocol. All patients will be encouraged to eat or drink for as long as possible during the therapy. All patients will meet with a speech-language therapist weekly during radiotherapy.
Conditions
Conditions (3)
Free-text conditions as registered, with the CancerIndex entity they were reconciled to and the match type.
| Condition (as posted) | Mapped entity | Match | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deglutition Disorders | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
| Head and Neck Neoplasm | Head and Neck Neoplasm | ONTOLOGY_EXACT | 0.98 |
| Trismus | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
Interventions
Interventions (1)
| Intervention | Type | Mapped drug | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preventive intervention | Behavioral | — | UNRESOLVED |
Design
Arms and outcomes
Arms (2)
- type
- EXPERIMENTAL
- label
- Preventive intervention
- description
- Patient will perform daily exercise: jaw and swallwing exercises, as well as are encouraged to eat and drink for as long as possible during treatment
- interventionNames
- Behavioral: Preventive intervention
- type
- NO_INTERVENTION
- label
- Control group
- description
- No intervention, only encouragement to eat and drink for as long as possible during treatment
Primary outcomes (2)
- measure
- Maximal Interincisal opening (MIO)
- timeFrame
- 1 month post radiotherapy
- description
- Jaw opening measured in millimeters. A MIO \<36 mm is considered as trismus. i.e. limited jaw-opening.
Eligibility
Eligibility (as posted)
- Sex
- All
- Minimum age
- 18 Years
Show eligibility criteria text
Inclusion Criteria: * Head and neck cancer (tumors of the oropharynx, pharynx, hypopharynx and larynx) * Receiving radiohterpay (+/- chemotherapy) with curative intent * No previous trismus or dysphagia Exclusion Criteria: * Surgery due to head and neck cancer * Previous treatment for head and neck cancer * Tracheostomized patients * No teeth * Inability to perform exercise intervention * Inability to independently fill out questionnaires in Swedish * Previous neurologic or neuromuscular disease
References
Publications (2)
- RESULTSaghafi E, Kadhim K, Andas CA, Cahlin BJ, Finizia C, Axelsson T, Kjeller G, Tuomi L. Jaw exercise in head and neck cancer patients for prevention of temporomandibular disorders: a randomized controlled trial. J Cancer Surviv. 2026 Jun;20(3):1145-1156. doi: 10.1007/s11764-024-01717-w. Epub 2024 Nov 22. PMID 39576571
- RESULTPetersson K, Finizia C, Pauli N, Tuomi L. Preventing radiation-induced dysphagia and trismus in head and neck cancer-A randomized controlled trial. Head Neck. 2025 Jan;47(1):159-174. doi: 10.1002/hed.27886. Epub 2024 Aug 1. PMID 39091121