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Can a sugar pill you know is fake fight cancer fatigue?

NCT ID NCT03927885

Symptom relief Sponsor: M.D. Anderson Cancer Center Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

This study's is highlighted.

Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing This study
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Aug 12, 2026 · Updated 2 times

Summary

This study tests whether an open labeled placebo—a pill with no active medicine that patients know is a placebo—can reduce fatigue in people with advanced cancer. About 100 participants will either receive the placebo or be placed on a waitlist. The goal is to see if simply taking a placebo can improve fatigue and quality of life.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Phase 2/3

Runs two stages together: whether the treatment works, then large-scale confirmation.

Participants

100 people

The number who actually took part.

Started

Mar 2019

Expected to finish

Dec 2026

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

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

18 years and older

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

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

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Patient with a diagnosis of advanced cancer (metastatic or recurrent incurable solid tumors) * Presence of fatigue of \>= 4/10 on Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (ESAS) Fatigue item (0-10 severity scale) * Patient should describe fatigue as being present for a minimum of 2 weeks prior to screening * Uncontrolled pain; patient is on opioids for the treatment of cancer pain, he/she must have had no major dose change (\> 25%) for at least 48 hours prior to study entry. Change in opioid dose after study entry is allowed * Patient must be 18 years of age or older. The questionnaires used in this study have been validated only in the adult population * Patient must be willing to engage in telephone follow up with research staff * Patient must have telephone access to be contacted by the research staff * Hemoglobin level of \>= 8 g/dL. Patient may receive packed red blood cell (PRBC) transfusion so as to have hemoglobin level of \>= 8 g/dL so at participate in the study Exclusion Criteria: * Surgery, or pain relieving procedures within 2 weeks of entry into the study or during the study period * Patients with history of substance abuse (Cut down, Annoyed, Guilty, Eye opener \[CAGE\] \>= 2+), cognitively impaired (MD Anderson Symptom \[MDAS\] \> 7)

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

cancer metastatic malignant neoplasm neoplasm Neoplasm Metastasis

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Advanced malignant solid neoplasm Metastatic malignant solid neoplasm Recurrent malignant solid neoplasm

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • M D Anderson Cancer Center

    Houston, Texas, 77030, United States

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