Clinical Research Directory

Study of Efficacy and Safety of Dabrafenib in Combination With Trametinib in Previously Treated Patients With Metastatic, Radio-active Iodine Refractory BRAF V600E Mutation Positive Differentiated Thyroid Cancer

The purpose of this study is to assess the efficacy and safety of dabrafenib in combination with trametinib for treating adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic Differentiated Thyroid Cancer (DTC) harboring the BRAFV600E mutation, who are refractory to radioactive iodine (RAI) therapy and have experienced disease progression following one or two prior VEGFR-targeted treatments.

Decision Aid Efficacy in Low Risk Thyroid Cancer

Low-risk thyroid cancer grows very slowly. More than 99% of patients with this cancer survive for at least 5 years. There are 3 main treatment options: remove the whole thyroid, remove just the part of the thyroid with the cancer in it, or leave the cancer in the thyroid and monitor it. Survival is similar across the 3 main treatment options. It can be difficult for patients to choose a treatment option, especially when feeling anxious about the cancer diagnosis. In this study, enrolled patients will receive a decision aid after finding out they have cancer but before meeting a surgeon. This decision aid is a pamphlet. It gives information about the treatment options and a list of questions for patients to ask their surgeons at their clinic visit. The investigators will test whether this aid changes patient decision anxiety and decision readiness.

The EMIRATES Study

This pilot study will take place in thyroid outpatient clinics. It will have two study arms running in consecutive order: first, a Control arm where standard care will take place without PDA-TC, then a Patient Decision Aid (PDA) arm where the PDA-TC is implemented into the clinical practice. Within each arm, eligible patients will attend two thyroid cancer outpatient clinical consultations during which the patient will make a shared decision with their clinicians regarding surgical treatment between hemithyroidectomy and total thyroidectomy. In the PDA arm, the PDA TC pamphlet will be introduced to study participants after the initial clinical consultation. The participants will be encouraged to read and digest information related to the disease and treatment options on PDA-TC before returning for their second consultation where a treatment decision will be made together with their clinicians. Participants will be asked to complete the Decisional Conflict Scale questionnaire after each consultation in both study arms. The patient will also complete a Satisfaction with Decision Scale questionnaire and a Preparation for Decision Making Scale questionnaire after the second consultation in both arms.