title: Radiation and nitroimidazoles in supratentorial high grade gliomas: a second clinical trial.
abstract: As a continuation of a previous controlled trial using "high-dose" metronidazole as a specific sensitizer of hypoxic cells, we used a more efficient nitroimidazole derivative (misonidazole, MISO) in combination with higher doses of radiation in patients with supratentorial high-grade astrocytomas. Sixty-six patients were stratified according to functional level and histological grading, and randomly allocated within 2 weeks of operation of 1 of 3 therapeutic groups: 1, conventional radiation alone; 2, large fractions of radiation with high-dose metronidazole; and 3, radiation as in Group 2 but with equitoxic doses of MISO. We examined survival as the principal end-point of the study. Neither by increasing the dose of radiation over the previous study, nor by using a more efficient sensitizer, were we able to improve survival over the current conventional daily fractionated radiation.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002528:Cerebellar Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D005909:Glioblastoma / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D006801:Humans; D008795:Metronidazole / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008875:Middle Aged; D008920:Misonidazole / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D009593:Nitroimidazoles / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011897:Random Allocation
chemical_list: D009593:Nitroimidazoles; D008795:Metronidazole; D008920:Misonidazole