Natural History of Familial Carcinoid Tumor

This study is currently recruiting participants.
Verified February 2013 by National Institutes of Health Clinical Center (CC)
Sponsor:
Information provided by:
National Institutes of Health Clinical Center (CC)
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:
NCT00646022
First received: March 26, 2008
Last updated: May 23, 2013
Last verified: February 2013
  Purpose

This study will evaluate families with a history of carcinoid cancer to determine ways to improve early detection and to find the gene that may cause the tumors. Carcinoid tumors usually originate in hormone-producing cells that line the small intestine or other cells of the digestive tract. The tumors are slow-growing and usually take many years before they cause symptoms. It is thought that these tumors occur more often in some families, passed from one generation to the next by inherited genes.

Members of families in which two or more immediate blood relatives have had gastrointestinal carcinoid tumors may be eligible for this study. Unaffected spouses of family members diagnosed with carcinoid cancer are also requested to participate.

Participants undergo a medical evaluation every 2 years during a 3- to 5-day hospital stay at the NIH Clinical Center. (Unaffected spouses undergo only the initial evaluation.) All participants have a personal and family medical history obtained and undergo a physical examination, blood and urine tests and genetic counseling. People who already have a carcinoid tumor or are at risk of developing a carcinoid tumor have the following additional procedures to determine the presence of carcinoid tumor and its location or spread to other areas of the body:

Children between 5 and 10 years of age: Medical history, physical examination and blood tests.

Children between 10 and 18 years of age: Medical history and physical examination. Additional tests for children in this group with symptoms or signs of carcinoid tumor may include video capsule endoscopy, computed tomography (CT) scans, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and somatostatin receptor scintigraphy (Octreoscan).

Adults:

  • Upper endoscopy: Examination of the esophagus, stomach and upper small intestine using a flexible tube (endoscope) passed from the throat through the upper gastrointestinal tract.
  • Colonoscopy: Examination of the colon using an endoscope inserted through the anus.
  • Capsule endoscopy: Visualization of the small intestine by ingesting a disposable, vitamin-pill sized video capsule that has its own camera and light source.
  • CT of the chest and abdomen: X-ray examination of the chest and abdominal organs.
  • MRI of the abdomen: Examination of the abdominal organs using a magnetic field and radio waves.
  • Octreoscan: Nuclear imaging scan performed over 1 to 3 days to detect the primary site of the tumor and any places it has spread.
  • Positron emission tomography (PET): Nuclear imaging scan to look at tumor activity.

Condition
Carcinoid

Study Type: Observational
Study Design: Time Perspective: Prospective
Official Title: Natural History of Familial Carcinoid Tumor

Resource links provided by NLM:


Further study details as provided by National Institutes of Health Clinical Center (CC):

Primary Outcome Measures:
  • Study the natural history of familial carcinoid tumors

Secondary Outcome Measures:
  • Recruit index cases and relatives with familial carcinoid tumors; Gene identification

Estimated Enrollment: 99999999
Study Start Date: March 2008
Detailed Description:

Carcinoid tumors are rare and cause either no or few nonspecific symptoms. Therefore, patients with carcinoid tumors most often present late in the course of their illness when there is already progression to an incurable state as a result of metastatic disease. At present there are neither practical population screening tests nor effective therapies and hence the 5 year survival rate is low. Due to the rareness of sporadic carcinoid tumors, large scale genetic analysis and development of sensitive and specific diagnostic tests have not been successful. While kindreds with familial carcinoid tumors that are not ascribable to known genetic syndromes are exceedingly rare, they provide a unique opportunity to facilitate the identification of the responsible gene mutation. In addition, the mutated gene in the rare familial form may also underlie the origin of the more common sporadic occurrence of carcinoid tumors. We propose to study families in which there are at least two known affected members with carcinoid tumors. We aim to diagnose patients with early and therefore potentially curable occult disease. Therefore, family members who have up to a 50% lifetime risk of harboring a carcinoid tumor will undergo an intensive diagnostic evaluation using biochemical, endoscopic and imaging modalities at initial and subsequent two year follow up encounters. Early phenotypic assignment of affected family members and collection of germline and tumoral DNA from multiple kindreds should also facilitate the genetic analysis leading to the identity of the disease gene. Evaluation of affected family members at varying stages of disease will contribute to our understanding of the natural history of carcinoid tumors and the relative utility of a variety of diagnostic and surveillance tests. Hopefully, such knowledge gained will also be applicable to patients with carcinoid tumors occurring sporadically or in the setting of other familial cancer syndromes. There is no planned treatment for patients with existing or newly diagnosed primary or metastatic carcinoid tumors. However, these patients may be evaluated by consultation with oncology and surgery for potential treatment on their service under their preexisting protocols.

  Eligibility

Ages Eligible for Study:   5 Years and older
Genders Eligible for Study:   Both
Accepts Healthy Volunteers:   No
Criteria
  • INCLUSION CRITERIA:

    1. Adult patients who are members of families in which there are at least two immediate relatives from consecutive generations that have been diagnosed with gastrointestinal carcinoid tumors (affected family member) and either have a carcinoid tumor or are at a 50% lifetime risk of developing a carcinoid tumor by virtue of being a first degree relative of an affected family member. This includes family members of patients with carcinoid tumors even if the patients with tumors are unwilling to participate so long as we have appropriate documentation confirming the diagnosis of the carcinoid tumors in the affected family members. Adult patients who are unable to provide informed consent but whose wishes suggest they are willing to donate samples for research purposes will be considered for study enrollment.
    2. Unaffected spouses of patients with a carcinoid tumor and who have children.
    3. Minor patients who are first-degree relatives of an affected family member and above the age of 5 years old (accompanied by at least one consenting parent or legal guardian) for genetic evaluation only.
    4. Minor patients who are first-degree relatives of an affected family member and above the age of 10 years old (accompanied by at least one consenting parent or legal guardian) for genetic and imaging evaluation.

EXCLUSION CRITERIA:

  1. Families with multiple endocrine neoplasia (MEN) I, MEN II or other familial tumor syndromes such as Von Hippel Lindau Syndrome and Neurofibomatosis for which there is a known genetic predisposition to non-carcinoid tumors as well as carcinoid tumors will be excluded from the study.
  2. Family members less than 5 years of age.
  3. Pregnancy, breastfeeding.
  4. Anticoagulation, seizures, severe systemic disease of any sort, advanced metastatic carcinoid may be relative exclusion criteria prohibiting a full evaluation as described above under protocol design. However, these medical conditions should not absolutely exclude participation in the protocol. Participation in each protocol delineated evaluation procedure will be judged on a case by case basis with patient safety as the paramount consideration.
  Contacts and Locations
Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00646022

Contacts
Contact: Stephen A Wank, M.D. (301) 496-4202 stevew@bdg10.niddk.nih.gov

Locations
United States, Maryland
National Institutes of Health Clinical Center, 9000 Rockville Pike Recruiting
Bethesda, Maryland, United States, 20892
Contact: For more information at the NIH Clinical Center contact Patient Recruitment and Public Liaison Office (PRPL)     800-411-1222 ext TTY8664111010     prpl@mail.cc.nih.gov    
Sponsors and Collaborators
Investigators
Principal Investigator: Stephen A Wank, M.D. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
  More Information

Additional Information:
Publications:
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00646022     History of Changes
Other Study ID Numbers: 080098, 08-DK-0098
Study First Received: March 26, 2008
Last Updated: May 23, 2013
Health Authority: United States: Federal Government

Keywords provided by National Institutes of Health Clinical Center (CC):
Neuroendocrine
PET
Gastrointestinal
Serotonin
Carcinoid Tumor
Gastrointestinal Carcinoid Tumor
Familial Cancer Tumor

Additional relevant MeSH terms:
Carcinoid Tumor
Neuroendocrine Tumors
Neuroectodermal Tumors
Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal
Neoplasms by Histologic Type
Neoplasms
Adenocarcinoma
Carcinoma
Neoplasms, Glandular and Epithelial
Neoplasms, Nerve Tissue

ClinicalTrials.gov processed this record on May 23, 2013