{"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","secondary-brain-tumours"],"sections":[],"technologies":["palliative-radiotherapy","palliative-care"],"targets":[],"drugs":["dexamethasone"],"companies":["mrc-ctu"],"institutions":["uclh"],"pathways":[],"terms":["wbrt"],"trials":["big-lung-trial"],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"dependsOn":[],"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,"enrolledBasis":"registry","outcomes":[{"endpoint":"Quality-adjusted life-years","primary":true,"unit":"QALY days","arms":[{"name":"Optimal supportive care + WBRT","n":269,"value":46.4,"note":"Difference 4.7 days, two-sided 90% CI -12.7 to 3.3"},{"name":"Optimal supportive care alone","n":269,"value":41.7}],"source":"https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30825-X"},{"endpoint":"Overall survival","arms":[{"name":"Optimal supportive care + WBRT"},{"name":"Optimal supportive care alone"}],"hr":1.06,"ci":[0.9,1.26],"source":"https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30825-X"}]},"route":"/trials/quartz/","neighbours":{"cancer":[{"id":"brain-tumours","kind":"cancer","name":"Brain and spinal cord tumours (all types)","route":"/cancers/brain-tumours/"},{"id":"secondary-brain-tumours","kind":"cancer","name":"Brain metastases (secondary brain tumours)","route":"/cancers/secondary-brain-tumours/"},{"id":"lung-cancer","kind":"cancer","name":"Lung cancer (all types)","route":"/cancers/lung-cancer/"},{"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/"}],"company":[{"id":"mrc-ctu","kind":"company","name":"MRC Clinical Trials Unit at UCL","route":"/companies/mrc-ctu/"}],"institution":[{"id":"uclh","kind":"institution","name":"University College London Hospitals / UCL Cancer Institute","route":"/institutions/uclh/"}],"term":[{"id":"lung-palliation-breathlessness-effusion-obstruction","kind":"term","name":"Palliation in lung cancer: breathlessness, pleural effusion, blocked airway, bone and brain","route":"/terms/lung-palliation-breathlessness-effusion-obstruction/"},{"id":"qol-pro","kind":"term","name":"Quality of life and patient-reported outcomes (QoL, PRO)","route":"/terms/qol-pro/"},{"id":"quality-adjusted-survival","kind":"term","name":"Quality-adjusted survival (QALYs and Q-TWiST)","route":"/terms/quality-adjusted-survival/"},{"id":"wbrt","kind":"term","name":"Whole-brain radiotherapy (WBRT)","route":"/terms/wbrt/"}],"trial":[{"id":"big-lung-trial","kind":"trial","name":"Big Lung Trial","route":"/trials/big-lung-trial/"},{"id":"jrosg-99-1","kind":"trial","name":"JROSG 99-1 (Aoyama): stereotactic radiosurgery with or without whole-brain radiotherapy","route":"/trials/jrosg-99-1/"}],"paper":[{"id":"paper-quartz-lancet-2016","kind":"paper","name":"QUARTZ: whole-brain radiotherapy versus supportive care alone for brain metastases from non-small-cell lung cancer","route":"/key-papers/paper-quartz-lancet-2016/"}]}}