Trial reportQuality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation2016
Xerostomia health-related quality of life: NRG oncology RTOG 0537.
Trial report in Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 12 citations in OpenAlex.
- Efficacy of Acupuncture in Managing Radiation-Induced Xerostomia: An Updated Meta-Analysis.International journal of medical sciences · 2025Pooled it
- Two- Versus Four-Times Weekly Acupuncture-Like Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation for Treatment of Radiation-Induced Xerostomia: A Pilot Study.Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.) · 2020Trial
- Do reminder emails and past due notifications improve patient completion and institutional data submission for patient-reported outcome measures?Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation · 2021Article
- Scintigraphic evaluation of salivary gland function in thyroid cancer patients after radioiodine remnant ablation.European journal of oral sciences · 2020Article
- Accupuncture-like transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation therapy success using a commercially available unit 8 years post-radiation for xerostomia: a case report.Journal of radiotherapy in practice · 2017Article
- Exploratory Factor Analysis of NRG Oncology's University of Washington Quality of Life Questionnaire-RTOG Modification.Journal of pain and symptom management · 2017Article
- Analysis of the Parotid Glands on an Energy Spectrum CT Iodine Map to Evaluate Irradiation-Induced Acute Xerostomia in Patients With Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.Technology in cancer research & treatmentArticle
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
15 authors at 13 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
purposeThe purpose of this secondary analysis was to determine change in overall health-related quality of life (HRQOL) based on patient data obtained from NRG Oncology RTOG 0537 as measured by the RTOG-modified University of Washington Head and Neck Symptom Score (RM-UWHNSS).
methodsA multi-site prospective randomized clinical trial design stratified 137 patients with post-radiation therapy xerostomia according to prior pilocarpine (PC) treatment and time after radiation therapy and/or chemotherapy and randomized patients into two groups. Patients were assigned to acupuncture or PC. Twenty-four sessions of acupuncture-like transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (ALTENS) were administered over 12 weeks, or oral PC (5 mg) three times daily over the same 12 weeks. The RM-UWHNSS was administered at baseline and at 4, 6, 9, and 15 months after the date of randomization.
resultsThere were no between-arm differences in change scores on the RM-UWHNSS in the individual items, total score, or factor scores. For statistical modeling, race and time were significant for all outcomes (total and factor scores), while treatment arm was not significant. The ALTENS arm showed greater yet nonsignificant improvement in outcomes compared to the PC arm.
conclusionAlthough no significant treatment differences were seen in this trial, patients receiving ALTENS consistently had lower scores, indicating better function, as compared to those receiving PC. Radiation-induced xerostomia improved over time for all patients.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.