Skip to main content
An official website of the United States government
Government Funding Lapse
Because of a lapse in government funding, the information on this website may not be up to date, transactions submitted via the website may not be processed, and the agency may not be able to respond to inquiries until appropriations are enacted.

The NIH Clinical Center (the research hospital of NIH) is open. For more details about its operating status, please visit cc.nih.gov.

Updates regarding government operating status and resumption of normal operations can be found at opm.gov.

Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy in Combination with Durvalumab, Cisplatin or Carboplatin, and Etoposide for Treatment of Refractory Extensive Stage Small Cell Lung Cancer

Trial Status: temporarily closed to accrual

This phase Ib trial tests how well stereotactic body radiotherapy works in combination with durvalumab, platinum-based drug, and etoposide in treating patients with small cell lung cancer that does not respond to treatment (refractory) and has spread to other places in the body (extensive stage). Small cell lung cancer is a highly aggressive tobacco-associated malignancy that accounts for approximately 13% of lung cancer diagnoses in the United States. Due to rapid tumor growth and early systemic spread, the majority of patients are diagnosed with incurable extensive stage of the disease. Despite the initial response to front line chemotherapy in more than 60% of patients, cancer comes back (relapses) every time, leading to early death with 2-year survival less than 10%. Radiation therapy uses high energy x-rays, particles, or radioactive seeds to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Stereotactic body radiation therapy uses special equipment to position a patient and deliver radiation to tumors with high precision. This method may kill tumor cells with fewer doses over a shorter period and cause less damage to normal tissue. Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as durvalumab, may help the body's immune system attack the cancer, and may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Chemotherapy drugs, such as platinum-based drugs like cisplatin and carboplatin, and etoposide work in different ways to stop the growth of cancer cells, either by killing the cells, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. Giving stereotactic body radiation with immunotherapy and chemotherapy may kill more cancer cells in patients with refractory extensive stage small cell lung cancer.