Queensland Centre for Gynaecological Cancer Research

LACE Trial

  1. Home
  2. Our Research
  3. Closed trials

Laparoscopic Approach to Carcinoma of the Endometrium (LACE) was an international, multicentre, randomised phase III clinical trial and completed enrolment of 760 women with endometrial cancer onto the trial in 2010.

It examined the treatment of endometrial cancer (EC) via a laparoscopic (key-hole) hysterectomy vs the traditional, open-abdominal approach. Laparoscopic approach is associated with far less post-surgery complications as well as less days spent in hospital and would result in a reduction of cost and less burden on the health system overall.

The LACE trial has had a significant impact on gynaecological surgery developments in Australia and world-wide. It showed that total laparoscopic surgery had significant benefits for patients including lower rate of postoperative adverse events, shorter length of hospital stay, better quality of life as reported in Lancet Oncology and European Journal of Cancer. Cost-effectiveness analyses was reported in the BMJ, showed that a decision to invest in laparoscopic surgery was cost effective for health funders in 98% of the time. This clinical trial remains the world's most influential randomised study in the surgical treatment of endometrial cancer, and its results demonstrated that laparoscopic surgery should be the first line therapy, a result that has become embedded in national and international treatment guidelines. This outcome had a major effect on the world-wide use of laparoscopic surgery for patients with endometrial cancer and is estimated to save the health care system $3000 for each operation that can be done laparoscopically since the results of the trial were published in JAMA in 2017.

As an extension of LACE we will now examine long term quality of life and lifestyle in these patients.

We aim to:

  • Describe the long-term quality of life (QoL) and lifestyle status (including health, physical activity, diet) of EC patients 6 to 10 years after surgery, and examine if there are differences between randomised treatment arms.
  • Explore the patients’ views on the motivators and barriers to lifestyle changes or persistent lifestyle detriments in EC patients and how they believe these can be improved (Queensland patients only).