Can a drug duo outsmart advanced breast cancer?

NCT ID NCT02536742

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
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed This study
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 Results may not be published yet.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This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.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 Aug 26, 2026 · Last updated Aug 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This trial is testing whether combining palbociclib and fulvestrant can help postmenopausal women with a specific type of advanced breast cancer (ER+/HER2-) that has stopped responding to prior treatments. The study aims to see how long the cancer stays under control and to look for genetic clues that might predict who benefits most. Participants receive both drugs in cycles until the disease progresses or side effects become unacceptable.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
palbociclib (a CDK inhibitor) combined with fulvestrant (an estrogen receptor degrader)
What this could lead to
If successful, this combination may offer a new treatment option for advanced breast cancer and help identify genetic markers that predict which patients benefit most.
What could go wrong
This is a phase II trial, so results are preliminary. The combination may not improve outcomes for all patients, and side effects like low blood cell counts and fatigue are possible.

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

Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.

Participants

124 people

The number who actually took part.

Started

Aug 2016

Finished

Dec 2022

Lead sponsor

A research network

The lead sponsor is a research network or cooperative group.

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

Female participants only

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: * Female gender * Age ≥ 18 years * Postmenopausal, defined as women with: * Prior bilateral surgical oophorectomy; or * Amenorrhea and age ≥ 60 years; or * Age \< 60 years and amenorrhea for 12 or more consecutive months in the absence of alternative pathological or physiological cause and FSH and serum estradiol levels within the laboratory's reference ranges for postmenopausal women. * Endocrine resistant disease, defined as one of: * Relapse while on adjuvant endocrine therapy; * Relapse within 12 months after completion of adjuvant endocrine therapy; * Progression of disease under first line endocrine therapy for metastatic and/or loco-regionally advanced breast cancer. Note: Patient may have received one prior chemotherapy for advanced or metastatic breast cancer. * ER positive tumor and HER2-negative tumor, as assessed locally * ECOG Performance Status 0-1. * Measurable or non-measurable but evaluable disease according to RECIST 1.1. * Written Informed Consent (IC) for screening procedures. * Written informed consent to participate in the AURORA program of BIG. * The patient has been informed of and agrees to data transfer and handling, in accordance with national data protection guidelines. * Life expectancy \>3 months. * Hematological status: * Absolute neutrophil count ≥ 1.5 × 109/L * Platelet count ≥ 100 × 109/L * Hemoglobin ≥ 9 g/dL * Hepatic status: * Serum total bilirubin ≤ 1.5 × upper limit of normal (ULN). * AST and ALT ≤ 2.5 × ULN; if the patient has liver metastases, ALT and AST must be ≤ 5 × ULN. * Glucose in normal range, or well-controlled diabetes defined as an HbA1c level ≤ 7.5%. * Renal status: \- Creatinine ≤ 1.5 ×ULN or creatinine clearance \> 60 ml/min. * International Normalized Ratio (INR) or Prothrombin Time (PT) ≤1.5 × ULN unless patient is receiving anticoagulant therapy as long as PT or PTT is within therapeutic range of intended use of anticoagulant. * Ability to swallow oral medication. Exclusion Criteria: * Prior use of fulvestrant or any CDK inhibitor. * More than one prior line of chemotherapy for metastatic or locally relapsed disease. * Previous or current non-breast malignancies within the last 5 years, with the exception of in situ carcinoma of the cervix, and adequately treated basal cell or squamous cell carcinoma of the skin. * Known active uncontrolled or symptomatic CNS metastases, carcinomatous meningitis or leptomeningeal disease as indicated by clinical symptoms, cerebral edema, and/or progressive growth. * Any of the following in the previous 6 months: myocardial infarction, severe/unstable angina pectoris, ongoing cardiac dysrhythmias of NCI CTCAE grade ≥2, atrial fibrillation of any grade, coronary/peripheral artery bypass graft, symptomatic congestive heart failure (NYHA functional classification ≥3), cerebrovascular accident including transient ischemic attack, or symptomatic pulmonary embolism. * QTc exceeding 480msec, family or personal history of long or short QT syndrome, Brugada syndrome or known history of QTc prolongation, or Torsade de Pointes (TdP). * Uncontrolled electrolyte disorders that can reinforce the QT-prolonging effect of the drug (e.g., hypocalcemia, hypokalemia, hypomag¬nesemia). * Known history of HIV seropositivity. HIV screening is not required at baseline. * Uncontrolled diabetes defined as HbA1c level \> 7.5%. * Concurrent disease or familial, sociological or geographical condition that would make the patient inappropriate for trial participation or any serious medical disorder that would interfere with the patient's safety. * Dementia, altered mental status, or any psychiatric condition that would prevent the understanding or rendering of Informed Consent. * Known abnormalities in coagulation such as bleeding diathesis, or treatment with anticoagulants precluding intramuscular injections of fulvestrant. * Treatment with an investigational agent in the 4 weeks before enrollment. * Concurrent treatment with any of the drugs not permitted * Adverse events (except alopecia) from previous systemic cancer therapy, radiotherapy or surgery have not recovered to CTCAE v4.0 grade 1 or resolved prior to 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.

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Antwerp University Hospital

    Edegem, 2650, Belgium

  • Azienda USL4 Prato

    Prato, Italy

  • Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre

    Glasgow, United Kingdom

  • CHU Liege

    Liège, Belgium

  • Clinique St. Elizabeth

    Namur, 5000, Belgium

  • Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc

    Brussels, 1200, Belgium

  • IRCCS San Martino University Hospital

    Genova, Italy

  • Institut Jules Bodet

    Brussels, 1000, Belgium

  • Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri, Medical Oncology Unit

    Pavia, 27100, Italy

  • Istituto Europeo di Oncologia

    Milan, Italy

  • Mater Salutis Hospital AULSS 21 della Regione Veneto

    Legnago, Italy

  • Ospedale Centrale Bolzano, Medical Oncology

    Bolzano, Italy

  • Ospedali degli Infermi, S.O.C. Oncologia

    Biella, 13879, Italy

  • Royal Cornwall

    Truro, United Kingdom

  • Singleton Hospital

    Swansea, United Kingdom

  • Sint-Augustinus

    Antwerp, 2610, Belgium

  • UZ Leuven

    Leuven, Belgium

  • Velindre NHS Trust

    Cardiff, United Kingdom

  • Western General Hospital

    Edinburgh, United Kingdom

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