# RTOG 0617

Source: https://onco.cc/trials/rtog-0617/  
OnCo record `rtog-0617` (Trial). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

RTOG 0617 is the trial that stopped dose escalation in lung cancer: patients given 74 Gy lived shorter than those given the standard 60 Gy, and cetuximab added nothing.

## Summary

RTOG 0617 randomised 544 patients with stage III non-small-cell lung cancer receiving concurrent carboplatin-paclitaxel to 60 Gy or 74 Gy, with or without cetuximab. Median overall survival was 28.7 months with 60 Gy and 20.3 months with 74 Gy; the high-dose arm had more treatment-related deaths and higher heart dose, and cetuximab gave no benefit (Bradley and colleagues, Lancet Oncology 2015). The result fixed 60 Gy as the standard and drew attention to heart dose as a determinant of survival.

## Fields

- Kind: Trial
- Status: negative
- Last checked: 2026-09-16
- Tags: radiation-wave2
- Registry id: NCT00533949
- Phase: 3
- Setting: Stage III non-small-cell lung cancer with concurrent chemotherapy: 74 Gy versus 60 Gy, with or without cetuximab
- Sponsor: NRG Oncology (RTOG)
- Enrolled: 544
- Result: Median overall survival 28.7 months (60 Gy) vs 20.3 months (74 Gy); cetuximab no benefit.
- Outcomes: Median overall survival: 60 Gy 28.7 months vs 74 Gy 20.3 months

## Sources

- ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00533949: https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT00533949
- Lancet Oncology 2015: https://doi.org/10.1016/S1470-2045(14)71207-0

## Connected records

- cancers: [Non-small-cell lung cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/nsclc/)
- technologies: [IMRT / IGRT (modern external beam)](https://onco.cc/technologies/imrt-igrt/), [Radiosensitisers](https://onco.cc/technologies/radiosensitisers/)
- drugs: [Carboplatin](https://onco.cc/drugs/carboplatin/), [Cetuximab](https://onco.cc/drugs/cetuximab/), [Paclitaxel / nab-paclitaxel](https://onco.cc/drugs/paclitaxel/)
- terms: [Chemoradiation (chemoradiotherapy, CRT)](https://onco.cc/terms/chemoradiation/), [Organs at risk and dose constraints](https://onco.cc/terms/organs-at-risk/)

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