Positioning in RT - Supine vs. Upright

NCT07765069 | Not Yet Recruiting FDA Device

• 1 other identifier: 25-5987
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 105
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

This is a single-center, non-therapeutic prospective pilot cohort study evaluating patient-reported comfort levels between upright and supine positioning in patients receiving radiation therapy across all age groups using a concurrent mixed-methods design. Following standard-of-care RT planning or delivery in the conventional supine position, patients and caregivers will complete a questionnaire evaluating the current treatment position. Patients will then be positioned upright in a chair, using similar immobilization to their supine setup when feasible. This position will be maintained for up to 15 minutes, as tolerated by the patient. During the upright positioning session, patients and caregivers will be asked open-ended questions exploring their perceptions of comfort, stability, and overall experience with the upright chair. No radiation or therapeutic intervention will be delivered during the upright session; the upright positioning procedure is non-therapeutic and conducted solely for assessment purposes. Patients and their caregivers will again be asked to complete a questionnaire evaluating the upright position. Key stakeholders involved in RT (including Radiation Therapists, Registered Nurses, Radiation Oncologists, or Medical Physicists), will participate in one semi-structured interview to explore perspectives on supine versus upright positioning for RT. Each interview will take up to 60 minutes and will be conducted in-person or virtual using UHN's Microsoft Teams. All sessions will be audio recorded and transcribed on the UHN Microsoft cloud, which is encrypted and stored securely.

Conditions

Cancer

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Mean difference in comfort scores (upright minus supine), Likert scale, collected immediately post-positioning

  The primary analysis will focus on within-subject comparisons of patient reported data from the questionnaire between supine and upright positioning. Ranking preference will be reported descriptively. Inferential statistics will be used to compare continuous and categorical outcomes (including paired t-tests, Wilcoxon signed-rank tests).

  24 months.

Secondary Outcomes (7)

• - Proportion preferring upright positioning

  24 months.

• Setup time

  24 months

• Age-stratified exploratory comfort/preference patterns

  24 months

• Proportion of participants with disabilities preferring upright positioning

  24 months

• Rate completing both positions without interruptions

  24 months

Study Arms (3)

Patients

Patients undergoing RT (as part of routine clinical care) who are in stable clinical condition.

Device: Upright positioning chair

Caregivers

Caregivers of the patients undergoing RT (when applicable).

Key Stakeholders

Key stakeholders involved in radiation therapy (including Radiation Therapists, Registered Nurses, Radiation Oncologists, and Medical Physicists).

Interventions

Upright positioning chair DEVICE

Following standard-of-care RT planning or delivery in the conventional supine position, patients and caregivers will complete a questionnaire evaluating the current treatment position. Patients will then be positioned upright in a chair, using similar immobilization to their supine setup when feasible. This position will be maintained for up to 15 minutes, as tolerated by the patient.

Patients

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 3 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Child (0-17), Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)
• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Patients undergoing RT (as part of routine clinical care) who are in stable clinical condition.

You may qualify if:

• Pediatric and adult patients aged 3 years and older, undergoing radiation therapy as part of standard clinical care.
• Lansky or Karnofsky score 40 or greater
• Ability to provide informed consent (or if appropriate, provided by parent or legal guardian).
• Ability to understand and speak English or with appropriate assistance

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University Health Network, Toronto: lead

Study Sites (1)

Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Toronto, Ontario, M5G 2M9, Canada

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Neoplasms

Central Study Contacts

Yat Tsang, PhD

CONTACT

416-946-4501; yat.tsang@uhn.ca

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: COHORT
• Time Perspective: PROSPECTIVE
• Target Duration: 1 Day
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: June 9, 2026
• First Posted: August 14, 2026
• Study Start (Estimated): October 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): November 30, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): November 30, 2027
• Last Updated: August 14, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-08

Locations

CA (1)