Non-small cell lung cancer trial completes Phase 3 primary endpoint

A Phase 3 clinical trial investigating selective lymph node dissection for cT1N0M0 invasive non-small cell lung cancer with CTR>0.5 located in the apical segment reached primary completion on 2026-01-01. The trial, ECTOP-1018, enrolled 634 participants.

Background

Lung cancer remains a leading cause of cancer-related mortality globally, with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounting for the majority of cases. Accurate staging, particularly the assessment of lymph node involvement, is critical for determining prognosis and guiding treatment decisions. For patients with early-stage NSCLC, surgical resection is often the primary treatment. However, the extent of lymph node dissection in specific early-stage presentations, such as cT1N0M0 invasive NSCLC with a consolidation-to-tumor ratio (CTR) greater than 0.5 located in the apical segment, is an area of ongoing research. Optimizing surgical approaches, like selective lymph node dissection, aims to balance oncological efficacy with minimizing surgical morbidity.

Trial design

This Phase 3 clinical trial, ECTOP-1018, enrolled 634 participants with Lung Adenocarcinoma and Lymph Node Metastasis, specifically focusing on cT1N0M0 invasive non-small cell lung cancer with a CTR>0.5 located in the apical segment. The intervention under investigation is selective lymph node dissection. The main questions it aims to answer include the 5-year overall survival of patients having this specific type of NSCLC, as well as post-operative lymph node metastasis and recurrence-free survival.

What this means

The primary completion of this Phase 3 trial marks a significant step towards understanding the role of selective lymph node dissection in patients with early-stage non-small cell lung cancer characterized by cT1N0M0 invasive disease and a CTR>0.5 in the apical segment. While specific results are not yet available, reaching this milestone indicates that the study has completed its planned data collection for its primary objectives. Future data releases will provide crucial insights into the therapeutic effect of this surgical approach, potentially influencing treatment strategies for this specific patient population and improving long-term outcomes for individuals with lung cancer.

Source

The information for this trial update was obtained from ClinicalTrials.gov, a public database of clinical studies. The primary completion date for the study NCT06031246, titled "Selective Lymph Node Dissection for cT1N0M0 Invasive NSCLC With CTR>0.5 Located in the Apical Segment (ECTOP-1018)", was reported on 2026-01-01 on clinicaltrials.gov.