Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41767798›Full record

ArticleCancer pathogenesis and therapy2026

The global landscape of particle beam radiotherapy trials over the past 15 years.

Wei Chen, Chenfei Wu, Mingying Xiao, Runzhe Chen, Lanlan Guo, Haoyue Hu, Xuan Li, Baiqiang Dong, Yuanyang Huang, Ming Chen

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Cancer pathogenesis and therapy, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Wei ChenDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510060, China.
Chenfei WuDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510060, China.
Mingying XiaoDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510060, China.
Runzhe ChenDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510060, China.
Lanlan GuoDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510060, China.
Haoyue HuDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510060, China.
Xuan LiDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510060, China.
Baiqiang DongDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510060, China.
Yuanyang HuangState Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510060, China.
Ming ChenDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510060, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Particle beam radiotherapy (PBRT), with its advantageous physical and biological properties, holds promise for improving therapeutic outcomes. To elucidate future clinical trial designs and policy decisions, we conducted this cross-sectional analysis of PBRT trials. Methods: We identified and analyzed the PBRT trials registered on ClinicalTrials.gov and the World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform from September 27, 2007 to June 3, 2023, examining key characteristics and comparing completed trials with those terminated prematurely. Results: A total of 416 PBRT trials were identified, comprising 285 proton therapy trials and 131 carbon ion therapy trials. The number of PBRT trials increased steadily from 101 (2007-2012) to 172 (2017-2023) but declined sharply after 2021. Despite decades of development, more than 70% of PBRT trials remained in phase I/II, and more than 50% had sample sizes of fewer than 50 participants (carbon ion: 67.9%; proton: 49.5%). Compared with proton therapy trials, carbon ion trials tended to exclude elderly individuals more strictly ( Conclusion: Despite decades of development, clinical application of PBRT remains in the preliminary exploration stage. Our study provides a comprehensive overview of PBRT trials over the past fifteen years, offering crucial guidance for future trial designs and policy formulation.

Indexed as

Clinical trials as topicHeavy ion radiotherapyProton therapyRadiotherapy

Identifiers

PMID41767798
PMCPMC12936678

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

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.