A randomized controlled trial of Serine/Glycine-Restricted diet combined with chemoradiotherapy and immunotherapy for neoadjuvant treatment of rectal cancer
NCT ID NCT07811076
First seen Sep 09, 2026 · Last updated Sep 09, 2026
Summary
This is a Phase Ib/II seamless, open-label, randomized controlled trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of a serine/glycine-restricted diet combined with neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and immunotherapy in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC). The study consists of two phases. Phase Ib is a non-randomized, single-arm safety run-in phase enrolling 6 patients, all of whom will receive the experimental regimen (serine/glycine-restricted diet plus CAPOX chemotherapy, PD-1 inhibitor, and short-course radiotherapy). The primary objective of Phase Ib is to assess safety, tolerability, and dietary compliance. If the safety criteria are met (≥3 grade diet-related adverse event rate ≤20% and compliance rate ≥70%), the study will proceed to Phase II. Phase II is a randomized, open-label, parallel-controlled phase in which 134 additional patients will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to either the experimental group (serine/glycine-restricted diet plus standard neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and immunotherapy) or the control group (standard neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and immunotherapy alone). The total enrollment is 140 patients (6 in Phase Ib + 134 in Phase II). The primary endpoint is the complete response rate (pCR + cCR). Secondary endpoints include major pathological response (MPR) rate, R0 resection rate, mrTRG regression grade, event-free survival (EFS), progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), adverse event profile, changes in serum amino acid levels, quality of life (EORTC QLQ-C30), and nutritional status. Exploratory endpoints include gut microbiome diversity and tumor immune microenvironment changes.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 1/2
Runs two stages together: safety and dose first, then whether the treatment works.
- Participants
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About 140 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Aug 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2029
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 80 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Written informed consent obtained prior to any study-related procedures. * Male or female, aged 18-80 years. * Histologically confirmed locally advanced rectal cancer staged as cT3, cT4, or node-positive by pelvic MRI. * ECOG performance status score of 0 or 1. * NRS-2002 score \< 3 (no significant nutritional risk). * BMI ≥ 18.5 kg/m² (may be adjusted per actual conditions). * Capable of oral intake or via feeding tube and able to tolerate enteral nutrition. * Adequate organ function as defined by the following laboratory criteria: ANC ≥ 1.5×10⁹/L (without G-CSF support within 14 days); Platelet count ≥ 100×10⁹/L; Hemoglobin ≥ 9 g/dL (without transfusion or erythropoietin use within 7 days); Serum albumin ≥ 3.0 g/dL; Total bilirubin ≤ 1.5× ULN; AST and ALT ≤ 2.5× ULN; Creatinine clearance ≥ 50 mL/min (Cockcroft-Gault formula) or serum creatinine ≤ 1.5× ULN; INR ≤ 1.5× ULN, PT and APTT ≤ 1.5× ULN; Urine protein \< 2+ (if ≥2+, 24-hour urine protein \< 2.0 g required for enrollment); Cardiac enzymes within normal range (isolated laboratory abnormalities without clinical significance permitted). * Female patients of childbearing potential must have a negative serum pregnancy test within 3 days prior to study treatment initiation and agree to use highly effective contraception from signing informed consent through at least 6 months after the last dose of study treatment. * All patients (male or female) at risk of pregnancy must use contraceptive methods with a failure rate \< 1% per year throughout the treatment period and up to 120 days after the last dose of study treatment (or 180 days after the last dose of chemotherapy). Exclusion Criteria: * Stage I or Stage IV rectal cancer. * Cognitive impairment or psychiatric disorders that prevent comprehension of the study content. * Central nervous system or meningeal metastases. * Clinically symptomatic moderate to severe ascites (requiring therapeutic paracentesis within 2 weeks before study treatment start; patients with small asymptomatic ascites may be enrolled). * Uncontrolled or moderate to severe pleural effusion and pericardial effusion. * Severe diarrhea, intractable vomiting, severe malabsorption syndrome, paralytic or mechanical intestinal obstruction; tracheoesophageal fistula, gastrointestinal perforation or fistula, or intra-abdominal abscess; gastrointestinal bleeding (CTCAE grade ≥ 3 within 6 months or grade ≥ 2 within 3 months before study treatment start, e.g., abnormal vaginal bleeding, hematemesis). * Any other condition that may affect the study results or lead to forced discontinuation (e.g., alcohol abuse, drug abuse, serious concurrent diseases, severe laboratory abnormalities, family or social factors) as judged by the investigator. * Known allergy to any active ingredient or excipient of the study drugs or nutritional powder. * Poorly controlled diabetes mellitus. * Severe cardiovascular disease, including cerebrovascular accident (CVA), transient ischemic attack (TIA), myocardial infarction, or major vascular disease within 6 months prior to enrollment; uncontrolled symptomatic cardiac disease such as unstable angina, NYHA class II or higher heart failure, LVEF \< 50% on echocardiography, or severe arrhythmia not controlled by medication. * Pregnancy or lactation. * Any other condition that the investigator considers unsuitable for enrollment.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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West China Hospital, Sichuan University
Chengdu, Sichuan, 610041, China
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