New imaging agent could sharpen prostate cancer staging
NCT ID NCT03535831
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This completed registry study at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre tested whether a special PET scan tracer called 18F-DCFPyL (PSMA) can find prostate cancer that has spread to lymph nodes or other organs better than standard CT and bone scans. A total of 142 men with intermediate- or high-risk prostate cancer, or those with a rising PSA after treatment, received a PSMA PET scan. The goal was to see if this imaging method changes how doctors stage or restage the disease and guides treatment choices.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- 18F-DCFPyL (a radioactive tracer used in PET scans)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this imaging method could help doctors find prostate cancer spread more accurately, leading to better treatment decisions.
- What could go wrong
- This is a registry study, not a randomized trial, so results may not prove that PSMA PET improves patient outcomes. The sample size is modest (142 men), and findings may not apply to all prostate cancer patients.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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142 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Apr 2018
- Finished
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Oct 2025
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Male participants only
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Patients will be eligible for inclusion in this study if they meet all of the following criteria: * Age ≥ 18 years * Histologic diagnosis of carcinoma of prostate * Being staged or restaged for any of the following indications: A. Staging of patients with: i. High risk disease; defined as at least one of the following: a. Gleason ≥8, b. ≥T3 disease, c. PSA \>20 ng/ml; ii. Unfavourable intermediate-risk disease defined as: a. more than one intermediate-risk factor (cT2b/ cT2c; GS=7; serum PSA of 10-20 ng/ml); or b. Gleason score of 4+3=7 or more; or c. greater than 50% positive biopsy cores. B. Staging or restaging of PCa with equivocal findings on conventional workup: i. Patients with PCa being staged or restaged with equivocal findings on conventional workup (CT, bone scan, MRI); to help guide management or select appropriate site for biopsy to establish disease status. C. Restaging of patients with: i. Biochemical failure (BCF) after primary therapy (radical prostatectomy or primary radiotherapy), or ii. BCF after salvage therapy/therapies when further treatment is being considered or iii. Pathologically involved nodes at time of radical prostatectomy or iv. Persistently detectable PSA (\>0.1 ng/ml) \>3 months after prostatectomy 5.1.4 Ability to provide written informed consent to participate in the study Exclusion Criteria: * Patients will be ineligible to participate in this study if they meet any of the following criteria: * Inability to lie still for PET/CT or PET/MR examination * For patients undergoing PET/MR only, any contraindication to MRI as per Joint Department of Medical Imaging policies (this exclusion criterion would not exclude patient from enrolling in the registry and undergoing PET/CT). * Patients with documented, clear-cut metastatic disease on conventional workup where PET findings would not potentially alter patient management. In case of uncertainty, the patient will be discussed at multidisciplinary tumor boards and a majority decision will be made
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Princess Margaret Cancer Centre
Toronto, Ontario, M5G 2M9, Canada