A Phase 2 interventional study of Cognitive Sparing Brain Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS) in Brain Metastases, Adult, Neurocognitive Function and Cancer, sponsored by Jona Hattangadi-Gluth. Recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-09-08.
Sponsored by Jona Hattangadi-Gluth · Phase 2, Interventional, and Treatment
In this proposal, the investigators introduce advanced diffusion and volumetric imaging techniques along with innovative, automated image parcellation methods to identify critical brain regions, incorporate into cognitive-sparing SRS for intracranial lesions, and analyze biomarkers of radiation response. This work will advance the investigators' understanding of neurocognitive changes after brain SRS and help create interventions that preserve cognitive-function in patients with intracranial lesions.
Background: Brain metastases affect one third of adult cancer patients. Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) is standard of care for patients with limited brain metastases. Yet most patients will experience post-treatment cognitive decline given the potential for high doses to eloquent white matter and the hippocampus. SRS is also standard of care for benign intracranial lesions like arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) and meningioma.
Objective/Hypothesis: The investigator's team has developed innovative, robust imaging methods and automated segmentation techniques to identify critical white-matter tracts and the hippocampus using advanced diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and volumetric imaging. These novel imaging techniques also allow us to directly and non-invasively measure microstructural changes after RT to critical brain structures in vivo. The investigators will use these advanced imaging technologies in a prospective trial of cognitive-sparing brain SRS.
Specific Aims: 1: To evaluate whether relative sparing of eloquent white matter tracts (critical for memory, language, attention, and executive functioning) and hippocampi from high doses during brain SRS results in improved 3-month post-SRS cognitive performance relative to historical controls in patients with 1 to 3 brain metastases. 2: To measure longitudinal trends in white matter damage (using DTI) and hippocampal atrophy (using volumetric change) among patients receiving cognitive-sparing brain SRS and correlate these imaging biomarkers with domain-specific cognitive outcomes.
Study Design: The investigators will prospectively enroll an anticipated 80-90 adult patients with intracranial lesions (benign tumors like meningiomas and AVMs) and limited brain metastases who are eligible for brain SRS and MRI. Patients will undergo MRI with DTI and 3D volumetric imaging at baseline (pre-SRS) and 1 month, 3 months, and 6 months afterwards. White matter and hippocampal segmentation will be performed and critical regions integrated into cognitive-sparing brain SRS planning with automated knowledge-based optimization. Cognitive-sparing dose constraints are derived from previous data. A well-established, validated battery of neurocognitive tests will be performed at baseline and 3 months post-SRS. Cognitive deterioration rate will be compared between the current trial and historical controls and linear regression used to analyze patient, tumor, and treatment related predictors of cognitive decline. Statistical modeling will be used to analyze changes in imaging biomarkers as a function of time and radiation dose, and these changes will be tested for association with domain-specific cognitive tests. Spatial sensitivity to RT dose across white matter tracts will be analyzed.
1,960 studies on the registry are indexed under Brain Neoplasms; 515 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 90 is above the median of 40 across 1,458 interventional studies indexed under Brain Neoplasms.
Browse Brain Neoplasms studies →Jona Hattangadi-Gluth is the lead sponsor of 2 studies on the registry; 2 are open to participants now.
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Exclusion Criteria:
This is a single arm phase II study where enrolled subjects will receive intracranial SRS will performed identically to standard of care, except for implementing additional imaging techniques and software for additional regional avoidance for cognitive sparing (specifically sparing white matter and the bilateral hippocampus)
Radiation: Cognitive Sparing Brain Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS)
In this proposal, the investigators introduce advanced diffusion and volumetric imaging techniques along with innovative, automated image parcellation methods to identify critical brain regions, incorporate into cognitive-sparing SRS, and analyze biomarkers of radiation response. This work will advance the investigators' understanding of neurocognitive changes after brain SRS and help create interventions that preserve cognitive-function during SRS for intracranial lesions
Change in Verbal Memory from baseline to 3 months after SRS
To evaluate the change from baseline to 3-month post-SRS verbal memory performance when performing relative sparing of eloquent white matter tracts and hippocampi from high doses during brain SRS in patients with 1 to 3 brain metastases. Verbal memory outcomes and measurements include: Hopkins Verbal Learning Test-Revised (HVLT-R)-Immediate, Delayed Recall. Scale of scores is 0-36 for Immediate, 0-12 for Delayed. For both tests, higher scores indicate better performance.
Time frame: Change from Baseline (pre-treatment) to 3 months post treatment
Change in Executive Functioning from baseline to 3 months after SRS
To evaluate the change from baseline to 3-month post-SRS executive functioning performance when performing relative sparing of eloquent white matter tracts and hippocampi from high doses during brain SRS in patients with 1 to 3 brain metastases. Executive functioning outcomes and measurements include: Controlled Oral Word Association Test (COWA): letter fluency, Trail Making Test Part B (TMT-B). Scale of scores is: Controlled Oral Word Association Test (COWA): letter fluency: 0- no upper limit. Higher score indicates better performance Trail Making Test Part B (TMT-B): 0-240. Higher score indicates poorer performance
Time frame: Change from Baseline (pre-treatment) to 3 months post treatment
Change in Attention/Processing Speed from baseline to 3 months after SRS
To evaluate the change from baseline to 3-month post-SRS Attention/Processing Speed performance when performing relative sparing of eloquent white matter tracts and hippocampi from high doses during brain SRS in patients with 1 to 3 brain metastases. Attention/Processing Speed outcomes and measurements include: Trail Making Test Part A (TMT-A) Scale of scores is: Trail Making Test Part A (TMT-A): 0-240. Higher score indicates poorer performance
Time frame: Change from Baseline (pre-treatment) to 3 months post treatment
Change in Language functioning from baseline to 3 months after SRS
To evaluate the change from baseline to 3-month post-SRS Language performance when performing relative sparing of eloquent white matter tracts and hippocampi from high doses during brain SRS in patients with 1 to 3 brain metastases. Language outcomes and measurements include: Boston Naming Test (BNT), Controlled Oral Word Association Test (COWA): category fluency Scale of scores is: Boston Naming Test (BNT): 0-60 Controlled Oral Word Association Test (COWA): category fluency: 0-no upper limit For both tests, higher score indicates better performance.
Time frame: Change from Baseline (pre-treatment) to 3 months post treatment
Longitudinal changes in imaging biomarker fractional anisotropy (FA) from DTI imaging
To measure longitudinal changes in FA (unitless index between 0 and 1) from DTI imaging
Time frame: baseline (pre-treatment), 3 months and 6 months post-treatment
Longitudinal changes in imaging biomarker mean diffusivity (MD) from DTI imaging
To measure longitudinal changes in MD (mm squared/second) from DTI imaging
Time frame: baseline (pre-treatment), 3 months and 6 months post-treatment
Longitudinal changes in imaging biomarker volume from volumetric MR imaging
To measure longitudinal changes in volume (cc) from volumetric MR imaging
Time frame: baseline (pre-treatment), 3 months and 6 months post-treatment
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Jona Hattangadi-Gluth