Periodic Reporting for period 2 - STOPSTORM (A PROSPECTIVE EUROPEAN VALIDATION COHORT FOR STEREOTACTIC THERAPY OF RE-ENTRANT TACHYCARDIA)
Okres sprawozdawczy: 2022-11-01 do 2024-04-30
The STOPSTORM consortium is investigating a promising new treatment for patients with refractory ventricular tachycardia (VT) which did not respond to conventional therapies like catheter ablation or anti-arrhythmic medication. This novel treatment uses a single, high-dose, non-invasive form of radiotherapy, which is well-known in cancer care as Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy (SBRT). For cardiac applications, this method is referred to as Stereotactic Arrhythmia Radioablation (STAR).
To enable the broader application of STAR, more clinical and technical data is needed, especially since small initial studies have shown that treatment effects may not always be lasting. The goal of the STOPSTORM project is to achieve a Europe-wide standardization of STAR, which requires close collaboration between radiation oncologists, medical physicists, and cardiologists.
The STOPSTORM consortium consists of 31 clinical and research institutions and is divided into nine work packages focused on establishing a comprehensive STAR treatment registry with associated quality assurance measures. In the initial phase, the project focused on setting up the legal and logistical foundation for collecting STAR data across Europe. Initial findings revealed significant variation in STAR practices throughout Europe, which will serve as a baseline for the main goal: developing unified standards, guidelines, and workflows for STAR. These outcomes from the STOPSTORM project will support future standardization and harmonization of STAR treatment across Europe.
To enable the broader application of STAR, more clinical and technical data is needed, especially since small initial studies have shown that treatment effects may not always be lasting. The goal of the STOPSTORM project is to achieve a Europe-wide standardization of STAR, which requires close collaboration between radiation oncologists, medical physicists, and cardiologists.
The STOPSTORM consortium consists of 31 clinical and research institutions and is divided into nine work packages focused on establishing a comprehensive STAR treatment registry with associated quality assurance measures. In the initial phase, the project focused on setting up the legal and logistical foundation for collecting STAR data across Europe. Initial findings revealed significant variation in STAR practices throughout Europe, which will serve as a baseline for the main goal: developing unified standards, guidelines, and workflows for STAR. These outcomes from the STOPSTORM project will support future standardization and harmonization of STAR treatment across Europe.
A new treatment approach for difficult-to-treat heart rhythm problems, specifically for patients with Ventricular Tachycardia (VT) that hasn’t responded to other treatments, is being tested. Known as STereotactic Arrhythmia Radioablation (STAR), this treatment adapts a method from cancer therapy to target heart tissue non-invasively. To expand this promising treatment, more clinical and technical data is needed from a larger number of patients.
In the initial phase of the STOPSTORM project, the consortium of over 30 centers was formed, and the groundwork was laid for data collection. This included aligning legal and logistical requirements across countries, establishing the STAR registry infrastructure, and designing initial clinical trials. Early studies and surveys revealed significant differences in STAR practices across sites, setting a baseline for future standardization efforts.
In the second phase, prospective clinical trials for STAR began in each participating country, and data entry into the registry started. The first guidelines on STAR were developed and shared through conferences and publications. Additionally, a patient advisory board was established to guide patient-centered resources, and more European centers joined as external partners to increase patient recruitment. This phase concluded with a seamless transition of the project’s coordinating center, maintaining steady progress despite minor delays.
In the initial phase of the STOPSTORM project, the consortium of over 30 centers was formed, and the groundwork was laid for data collection. This included aligning legal and logistical requirements across countries, establishing the STAR registry infrastructure, and designing initial clinical trials. Early studies and surveys revealed significant differences in STAR practices across sites, setting a baseline for future standardization efforts.
In the second phase, prospective clinical trials for STAR began in each participating country, and data entry into the registry started. The first guidelines on STAR were developed and shared through conferences and publications. Additionally, a patient advisory board was established to guide patient-centered resources, and more European centers joined as external partners to increase patient recruitment. This phase concluded with a seamless transition of the project’s coordinating center, maintaining steady progress despite minor delays.
The project builds on a close collaboration between radiation oncologists and electrophysiologists: medical specialists that normally do not have close encounters due to non-overlapping patient populations. Raising the collaboration to a European level sparked a great enthusiasm in the collaborators, intensifying local, national and international progress in the field. As side effect from the project, electrophysiologists started to exchange knowledge on the standard procedures, increasing effectivity in some cases. Radiation oncologists saw the same positive effects from collaboration and bench marking of their departments. At the end of the project, electrophysiology and radiotherapy will have become better as parts, but also as collaborative treatments.