Could a common virus help brain tumors grow? new trial tests Anti-Viral drug in breast cancer patients
NCT ID NCT07383649
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Aug 11, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This phase II trial is testing whether an anti-viral drug called valganciclovir (Valcyte) can help treat breast cancer that has spread to the brain. The study includes 28 adults with progressive brain metastases who also have evidence of a common virus called CMV. Participants take the drug for 6 weeks alongside standard care. The goal is to see if targeting the virus can shrink brain tumors and improve quality of life.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Valganciclovir (Valcyte)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could point toward a new way to treat brain metastases in breast cancer patients by targeting a common virus (CMV) that may help tumors grow.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-phase trial with only 28 participants. It is testing a drug already approved for CMV, not a new treatment for cancer itself, so the benefit may be limited. Side effects from valganciclovir can include kidney problems and low blood cell counts.
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 28 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jul 2026
- Expected to finish
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May 2030
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 years and older
- 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: 1. Male or female aged \>18 years at the time of consent 2. Breast cancer with progressive brain metastases supra and/or infratentorial. Patients can proceed with SRS as long as at least 1 lesion which is 2 cm or less in a noncritical area in the brain is spared as per the discretion of treating neurosurgeon/radiation oncologist. 3. At least one non irradiated, untreated progressive brain metastases site 4. Serum HCMV DNA by real time PCR \> 250 copies/ml or positive CMV Ig G or Ig M. 5. Capable of giving signed informed consent which includes compliance with the requirements and restrictions listed in the informed consent form and in this protocol. If the patient is unable to consent for any reason a legally authorized guardian may provide consent on their behalf. Written informed consent and any locally required authorization (e.g., Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) will be obtained from the patient prior to performing any protocol-related procedures, including screening evaluations. 6. Metastatic breast cancer who has systemically no evidence of disease, complete remission, partial remission, stable or progressive disease 7. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance score of 0-2 8. Adequate hematology without ongoing transfusion support (hemoglobin \> 9 g/dl, absolute neutrophil count (ANC) \> 1500 per mm3 , platelets \> 100,000 per mm3) 9. Adequate renal and hepatic function (creatinine clearance \[CrCL\] \> 60 mL/min, bilirubin x:≤1.5 upper limit of normal (ULN), aspartate aminotransferase \[AST\] and alanine aminotransferase \[ALT\] ≤ 2.5 x ULN and serum albumin ≥ 3 g/dl. 10. Other CMV treatment if clinically indicated per physician's choice 11. Evidence of postmenopausal status or negative serum pregnancy test for premenopausal female patients. Negative serum β-human chorionic gonadotropin pregnancy test within 7 days prior to the first dose of study treatment for premenopausal patients. Women will be considered postmenopausal if they have been amenorrheic for 12 months without an alternative medical cause. The following age-specific requirements apply: 12. Women \<50 years of age would be considered postmenopausal if they have been amenorrheic for 12 months or more following cessation of exogenous hormonal treatments and if they have luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone levels in the postmenopausal range for the institution or underwent surgical sterilization (bilateral oophorectomy or hysterectomy). 13. Women ≥50 years of age would be considered postmenopausal if they have been amenorrheic for 12 months or more following cessation of all exogenous hormonal treatments, had radiation-induced menopause with last menses \>1 year ago, had chemotherapy-induced menopause with last menses \>1 year ago, or underwent surgical sterilization (bilateral oophorectomy, bilateral salpingectomy, or hysterectomy). 14. Patient is willing and able to comply with the protocol for the duration of the study including undergoing treatment and scheduled visits and examinations including follow-up. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Single resectable intracranial lesion 2. Last intracranial progression free survival \> 12 months 3. All progressive brain metastases have been radiated 4. Brain metastases needing immediate local intervention such as mass effect, herniation, active neurological symptoms, increased intracranial pressure, those near vital structures like the motor cortex, proximity to the optic nerve/chiasm or brain stem etc (can still be included if there are any other non-radiated progressive brain metastases) Multidisciplinary discussion with neurosurgery and radiation oncology will be needed to determine which patients may be safely enrolled on the trial. 5. Active pregnancy or breast feeding 6. Women of childbearing potential or fertile men unwilling to use effective contraception (Section 6.2, Table 6) during study and up to three months after treatment discontinuation. 7. Known psychiatric disorder that causes poor cooperation with the trial requirements. 8. Participants with previous other malignancies must have had at least a 3-year disease free interval, except those with non-melanoma skin cancer or carcinoma in situ of cervix 9. Participation in another clinical study with an investigational product within 28 days prior to the first dose of study treatment. 10. Concurrent enrollment in another clinical study unless it is an observational (non-interventional) clinical study or during the follow-up period of an interventional study. 11. Unresolved or unstable adverse events (AEs) from prior administration of another investigational drug, per investigators' discretion. 12. Major surgical procedure (as defined by the investigator) within 28 days prior to the first dose of study treatment. 13. Non-English-speaking subjects will not be enrolled in this study since the neurocognitive tests including DKEFS, RAVLT and TMT are not validated to be scored in other languages.
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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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Houston Methodist Neal Cancer Center
RECRUITINGHouston, Texas, 77030, United States
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- Can a Three-Drug combo crack Triple-Negative breast cancer?
- Can doctors watch brain metastases instead of zapping them?
- Starving brain tumors of blood before surgery
- Tiny gadolinium particles aim to make brain radiation hit harder