Thirty-nine hospitals across the United Kingdom are participating in a clinical trial testing whether breast cancer radiotherapy can be shortened from three weeks to five days.
The FAST-Forward Boost trial has enrolled more than 1,000 participants and is investigating whether a shorter course of radiotherapy, combined with an additional targeted dose known as a boost, can help prevent breast cancer from returning.
The trial is led by the Institute of Cancer Research, London, and funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research.
According to the UK Department of Health and Social Care on Friday, the research could save patients 10 hospital visits if the shorter treatment approach proves successful.
PUNCH Online had earlier reported that more than 1,000 people have joined a government-funded clinical trial testing whether breast cancer radiotherapy can be shortened from three weeks to five days, potentially saving patients 10 hospital visits.
The participating hospitals are:
The Royal Marsden Hospital, London
2. The Royal Marsden Hospital, Sutton
3. Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge
4. Christie Hospital, Manchester
5. Royal Surrey County Hospital
6. Churchill Hospital, Oxford
7. Singleton Hospital, Swansea
8. Royal Free Hospital, London
9. James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough
10. Royal Berkshire Hospital
11. Charing Cross Hospital, London
- 12. Southampton General Hospital
13. Western General Hospital, Edinburgh
14. St John’s Hospital, Livingston
15. Barts (St Bartholomew’s Hospital), London
16. The Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre
17. Royal Alexandra Hospital, Paisley
18. Clatterbridge Cancer Centre
19. Queen Alexandra Hospital, Portsmouth
20. University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire
21. Weston Park Hospital, Sheffield
22. Royal Shrewsbury Hospital
23. Belfast City Hospital
24. Peterborough City Hospital
25. Northampton General Hospital
26. Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary
27. Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham
28. Borders General Hospital
29. University Hospital Crosshouse, Kilmarnock
30. West Middlesex University Hospital
31. University Hospital Hairmyres
32. St James’s University Hospital, Leeds
33. Guy’s Hospital, London
34. Bristol Haematology & Oncology Centre
35. Ipswich Hospital
36. Forth Valley Royal Hospital
37. University College Hospital, London
38. Ealing Hospital
39. Mount Vernon Cancer Centre
“The trial aims to recruit 4,830 participants by 2028.
“Participants will be followed up for five years, with results expected in 2033,” the release concluded.
