Could donor stem cells help lungs heal in ARDS?

NCT ID NCT03818854

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 Results may not be published yet.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This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.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 Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026

Summary

This study tested whether a single infusion of stem cells from donor bone marrow could help people with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), a severe lung condition. 120 adults on ventilators received either stem cells or a placebo. Researchers measured changes in oxygen levels and lung injury scores over the first 36 hours and beyond.

What this could mean

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

Active substance
human mesenchymal stromal cells (stem cells from donor bone marrow)
What this could lead to
If it works, this could point toward a new treatment for severe lung failure (ARDS) that reduces the need for high oxygen and ventilator support.
What could go wrong
This is a mid-stage trial with only 120 participants, so results may not apply to all ARDS patients. The treatment is still experimental and may not improve outcomes.

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

120 people

The number who actually took part.

Started

Nov 2019

Finished

Jun 2024

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: Patients will be eligible for inclusion if they meet all of the below criteria within 14 days of initial ICU admission. Criteria 1-3 must all be present within a 24-hour time period and at the time of enrollment: Acute onset (defined below) of: 1. A need for positive pressure ventilation by an endotracheal or tracheal tube with a PaO2/FiO2 ratio \<250 mmHg and ≥5 cm H2O positive end-expiratory airway pressure (PEEP), as per the Berlin Criteria. 2. Bilateral infiltrates consistent with pulmonary edema (defined below) on the frontal chest radiograph, or bilateral ground glass opacities on a chest CT scan. 3. No clinical evidence of left atrial hypertension as a primary explanation for the bilateral pulmonary infiltrates. 4. If the cause of ARDS is trauma, additional inclusion criteria will include ONE of the following relevant risk factors for developing ARDS: 1. Hypotension (systolic blood pressure\[SBP\] \< 90 mmHg) in the field or in the first 24 h after injury, or 2. Transfusion of 3 units of blood products in the first 24 hours following injury, or 3. Meets the new Critical Administration Threshold (CAT) criteria with at least 3 units of blood in one hour, or 4. Blunt or penetrating torso trauma, or 5. Long bone fractures, or 6. The highest level of institutional trauma activation Exclusion Criteria: 1. Age less than 18 years 2. Greater than 72 hours since first meeting ARDS criteria per the Berlin definition of ARDS 3. Greater than 14 days since initial ICU admission 4. Inability to administer study product within 14 days of ICU admission 5. PaO2/FiO2 ≥ 250 mmHg after consent obtained and before study product is administered 6. Unable to obtain informed consent/no surrogate available 7. Pregnant or lactating 8. In custody of law enforcement officials 9. Burns \> 20% of total body surface area 10. WHO Class III or IV pulmonary hypertension 11. History of cancer treatment in the last 2 years except for non-melanotic skin cancers 12. Underlying medical condition for which 6-month mortality is estimated to be \> 50% 13. Moribund patient not expected to survive 24 hours 14. Advanced chronic liver disease (Child-Pugh Score \> 12) 15. Severe chronic respiratory disease with the use of home oxygen 16. Severe traumatic brain injury - defined as: 1. A patient who has undergone intracranial neurosurgical intervention for monitoring or therapy (intracranial pressure monitoring, external ventricular drain, craniotomy), or 2. Intracranial injury by head CT (does not include patients with minimal subarachnoid injury and/or minor skull fracture), or 3. Post-resuscitation Glasgow Coma Score (GCS) \< 9 assessed after sedation interruption, or 4. Non-survivable head injury as assessed by neurosurgery 17. Evidence of anoxic brain injury 18. History of stroke within the last 3 years 19. No intent/unwillingness to follow lung protective ventilation strategy 20. Currently receiving extracorporeal life support (ECLS) or high-frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV) 21. Anticipated extubation within 24 hours of enrollment 22. Clinical evidence of left atrial hypertension as measured by a pulmonary arterial wedge pressure \> 18mmHg or left ventricular failure measured by an echocardiogram with a left ventricular ejection fraction less than 40%. Clinical judgement will determine if either of these measurements needs to be carried out.

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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

  • Harborview Medical Center

    Seattle, Washington, 98112, United States

  • Memorial Hermann Hospital - Texas Medical Center

    Houston, Texas, 77030, United States

  • Oregon Health & Science University

    Portland, Oregon, 97239, United States

  • University of California Davis Medical Center

    Sacramento, California, 95817, United States

  • University of California San Francisco

    San Francisco, California, 94143, United States

  • Vanderbilt University Medical Center

    Nashville, Tennessee, 37232, United States

  • Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center

    San Francisco, California, 94110, United States

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