Celebrating the LYMPH Trial – Winner of the Amplify Award

June 12, 2026

Introducing the Amplify Award 

Recognizing Patient-Researcher Partnerships that shape cancer research.  

Rising Tide Foundation for Clinical Cancer Research (RTFCCR) proudly presents the Amplify Award, celebrating the collaboration between patients and researchers that has made the biggest difference in how a clinical trial is designed, run and experienced. Out of 62 ongoing trials within our funding portfolio, we have selected the LYMPH Trial – Microsurgical versus Conservative Decongestion Therapy for Chronic Breast Cancer-Related Lymphedema – as our winner. 

The LYMPH Trial at a Glance 

Co- led by Prof. Dr. Elisabeth Kappos, the Principal Investigator and Surgeon at the University Hospital of Basel, alongside the patient partner Prof. Dr. Maria Katapodi- Professor of Nursing and Research Group Leader in Clinical Epidemiology at the University of Basel. Together, they bring clinical expertise and the patient perspective to the trial leadership.  

The problem they set out to solve 

Chronic breast cancer-related lymphedema (BCRL) – a swelling of the arm caused by disruption of the lymphatic drainage system- affects between 5%-40% of breast cancer patients. It is a lifelong condition for which current standard therapy, which includes manual lymphatic drainage, compression garments, and skin care, can help manage symptoms but cannot cure it. Microsurgical options exist that aim to achieve permanent improvement, but they are not covered by insurance because robust evidence that they are superior to conservative care is still lacking. The LYMPH Trial was designed to close that gap.  

The trial’s central aim: to determine whether surgical treatment of lymphedema leads to a better quality of life after 15 months compared to standard treatment without surgery. 

  • 280 patients across 30+ hospitals worldwide 
  • Patients are randomly assigned to either microsurgical therapy (Group A) or conservative therapy for 15 months, with the option to pursue surgery thereafter (Group B). 
  • Primary outcome: Patients’ quality of life, measured through regular questionnaires. 
  • Secondary outcomes: arm volume, number and severity of infections, and frequency of lymphatic drainage. 
  • Duration: 2-year main study period, with extended follow-up of up to 10 years. 

What Makes the LYMPH Trial Stand Out 

  • A patient partner in formal leadership: For the first time in our portfolio, a patient partner holds the role of Co-Principal Investigator. The patient partner has an equal voice at the table in shaping how the trial is designed, conducted and disseminated. 
  • Focusing on patient-relevant outcomes: The primary endpoint of the trial is not a surgical outcome, but how patients feel in their daily lives. Captured through regular patient-reported questionnaires. 
  • A pragmatic trial design: The trial documents what happens in real clinical practice, making results directly transferable to healthcare and reimbursement decision-making. 
  • Minimizing participant burden: Data collection was aligned with patients’ existing hospital visits, minimizing additional load on people already navigating a cancer diagnosis. 
  • Equal access to treatment options: Patients in the conservative care group are offered the surgical option after the 15-month period. 

Making Patient Partnership Standard Practice 

Since 2020, the Rising Tide Foundation for Clinical Cancer Research (RTFCCR) has been working to make patient involvement the new norm in clinical cancer research. Every research project applying for RTFCCR funding must include a Patient Partner Involvement Plan, ensuring that patient voices are integrated throughout the trial. Furthermore, RTFCCR involves patients at every stage of the process, from co-creating funding calls and helping research groups write grant proposals, through to reviewing applications in grant review panels, serving on advisory boards and ultimately taking an active role in communicating progress and results of the trial.  The LYMPH Trial sets a gold standard: A trial where a patient partner does not advise from the sidelines but leads from the front as Co-Principal Investigator. 

We congratulate the LYMPH Trial on this amazing achievement. It marks a new chapter in patient partner involvement, and we hope that future trials will follow its lead!

 

 

Scroll to Top