Cancer drug could supercharge malaria treatment and beat resistance
NCT ID NCT07559370
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 30, 2026 · Updated 3 times
Summary
This study tests whether adding imatinib, a drug currently used for cancer, to the standard malaria treatment (artemether + lumefantrine) can clear the malaria parasite faster and fight drug resistance. About 1,100 adults with mild to moderate malaria will receive either the standard 3-day treatment or a 2-day combination with imatinib. Researchers will check safety, how quickly parasites disappear, and whether the infection comes back.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Imatinib mesylate combined with artemether and lumefantrine
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could lead to a shorter, more effective malaria treatment that also helps stop the spread of drug-resistant parasites.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early Phase 2 trial, so the added benefit of imatinib is not yet proven. There may be side effects from the combination, and results may not apply to all malaria patients.
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
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Phase 2
Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.
- Participants
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About 1,116 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jan 2026
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2027
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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1 year to 55 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: For Part 1 and 2 of the study design, all individuals must meet all the inclusion criteria below: * Patients diagnosed with symptomatic mild to moderate P. falciparum malaria with a parasite density of \>= 5000 parasites/μl * Adult male, age 18-55 years old or adult female, age 18-55 years that are post-menopausal, or test negative on a pregnancy test and will be on active birth control through to the end of the follow up period. * Provision of informed consent and agrees to hospital admission for 48-72hrs * Good health condition other than malaria * The patient has not taken anti-malarial drugs in the past 4 weeks For Part 3 of the trial, all individuals must meet all the inclusion criteria below: * Patients diagnosed with symptomatic mild to moderate P. falciparum malaria and a parasite density of \>= 5000 parasites/μl * Age 12 months to below 18 years * Presented by parent or legally accepted representative (LAR) who has consented to the participation of the child in the trial and agrees to hospital admission for 48-72hrs. * Hb levels \> 5mg/dL * Child has not taken anti-malarial drugs in the past 6 weeks. Exclusion Criteria: * Prospective study participant, LAR and/or impartial witness (where applicable) declines to provide informed consent. * Symptoms and signs of severe or complicated malaria including: * significant confusion or impaired consciousness (including unarousable coma) * multiple convulsions (more than two episodes within 24 hours), * respiratory distress * circulatory collapse (systolic blood pressure \<80mm Hg with evidence of impaired perfusion) * clinical jaundice plus evidence of other vital organ dysfunction * simultaneous infection of unrelated origin * Parasite density \> 200,000 parasites /μl * In the case of female participants: currently pregnant or lactating * Other neurological or psychiatric symptoms or disorders * Abnormal bleeding * Resting heart rate lower than 55 or higher than 100 bpm * History of cardiac disease * Signs, symptoms and laboratory results of impairment of vital organs such as liver, lungs, kidney and cardiovascular system * Abnormal blood chemistry: * hemoglobin \< 9.0 g/dL in adults or \< 5.0 g/dL in children 12 months-18 years * WBC not in the range of 4800-10,000/mm3 * RBC if \< 4.0x106/ mm3 * Platelet \< 1.3x105/ mm3 * ALAT not in the normal range (4 to 36 U / l) * ASAT not in the normal range (8 to 33 U / l) * Total bilirubin 0.1 to 1.2 mg / 100 ml * Serum protein if \< 5.5 g/dL * Symptoms and signs of infection such as pneumonia, dengue fever, and other viral or bacterial infection. * Patients with symptoms of gastrointestinal infections or any sign of malabsorption that may interfere with drug absorption. * Concomitant infection by plasmodium species other than P. falciparum * Inability to attend/meet study staff on follow up visits * Concomitant use of medicines, including: * medicines used to treat high cholesterol (such as atorvastatin, lovastatin, simvastatin); * medicines used to treat hypertension and heart problems (such as diltiazem, nifedipine, nitrendipine, verapamil, felodipine, amlodipine); * medicine used to treat HIV (antiretroviral medicines) including protease inhibitors (such as amprenavir, atazanavir, indinavir, nelfinavir, ritonavir), non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (such as efavirenz, nevirapine); * medicines used to treat microbial infections (such as telithromycin, rifampicin, dapsone); * medicines used to help you fall asleep: benzodiazepines (such as midazolam, triazolam, diazepam, alprazolam), zaleplon, zolpidem; * medicines used to prevent/treat epileptic seizures including barbiturates (such as phenobarbital), carbamazepine or phenytoin; * medicines used after organ transplantation and in autoimmune diseases (such as cyclosporin, tacrolimus); * nefazodone (used to treat depression); * aprepitant (used to treat nausea);
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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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Victoria Biomedical Research Institute
RECRUITINGKisumu, 40100, Kenya
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