{"entity":{"id":"quartz","kind":"trial","name":"QUARTZ","aka":[],"tldr":"QUARTZ found that whole-brain radiotherapy added nothing measurable, in survival or quality of life, for lung cancer patients whose brain metastases could not be treated with surgery or radiosurgery.","summary":"QUARTZ randomised 538 patients with non-small-cell lung cancer and brain metastases unsuitable for resection or stereotactic radiosurgery to optimal supportive care with dexamethasone, with or without whole-brain radiotherapy (20 Gy in five fractions). Quality-adjusted life-years (46.4 vs 41.7 days) and overall survival (9.2 vs 8.5 weeks) did not differ meaningfully (Mulvenna and colleagues, Lancet 2016). The result restrained the routine use of whole-brain radiotherapy in patients with poor performance status.","status":"negative","asOf":"2026-09-16","links":[{"label":"ISRCTN3826061","url":"https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN3826061"},{"label":"Lancet 2016","url":"https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30825-X"}],"tags":["radiation-wave2"],"related":[],"cancers":["nsclc","brain-tumours"],"sections":[],"technologies":["palliative-radiotherapy","palliative-care"],"targets":[],"drugs":["dexamethasone"],"companies":[],"institutions":[],"pathways":[],"terms":["wbrt"],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"notes":[],"phase":"3","setting":"Non-small-cell lung cancer with brain metastases unsuitable for surgery or radiosurgery: whole-brain radiotherapy plus supportive care versus supportive care alone","sponsor":"Medical Research Council (UK)","result":"Quality-adjusted life-years 46.4 vs 41.7 days; overall survival 9.2 vs 8.5 weeks; no meaningful benefit from whole-brain radiotherapy.","yearReported":2016,"enrolled":538,"outcomes":[]},"route":"/trials/quartz/","neighbours":{"cancer":[{"id":"brain-tumours","kind":"cancer","name":"Brain and spinal cord tumours (all types)","route":"/cancers/brain-tumours/"},{"id":"nsclc","kind":"cancer","name":"Non-small-cell lung cancer","route":"/cancers/nsclc/"}],"technology":[{"id":"palliative-care","kind":"technology","name":"Early integrated palliative care","route":"/technologies/palliative-care/"},{"id":"palliative-radiotherapy","kind":"technology","name":"Palliative radiotherapy","route":"/technologies/palliative-radiotherapy/"}],"drug":[{"id":"dexamethasone","kind":"drug","name":"Dexamethasone","route":"/drugs/dexamethasone/"}],"term":[{"id":"wbrt","kind":"term","name":"Whole-brain radiotherapy (WBRT)","route":"/terms/wbrt/"}]}}