Could your own gut bacteria restore bowel control after cancer surgery?
NCT ID NCT07711509
First seen Jul 17, 2026 · Last updated Jul 17, 2026
Summary
This study tests whether transplanting a person's own fecal bacteria into the bowel before ileostomy reversal can improve bowel and anal function after rectal cancer surgery. Participants receive four weekly enemas made from their own stool. The goal is to reduce symptoms like leakage and urgency, which are common after this type of surgery.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- autologous fecal microbiota transplantation (a person's own stool bacteria, processed and given as an enema)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this approach could offer a simple, personalized way to reduce bowel control problems and improve quality of life after rectal cancer surgery.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study with no comparison group, so results may not be generalizable. The procedure may cause discomfort or fail to improve symptoms.
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
-
Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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35 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Mar 2025
- Expected to finish
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Sep 2026
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 to 75 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: 1. Age 18 to 75 years. 2. Histologically or clinically confirmed rectal cancer with the lower tumor margin less than 12 cm from the anal verge. 3. Undergoing radical rectal cancer surgery with protective loop ileostomy. 4. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0 or 1. 5. Able to understand the study procedures and willing to provide written informed consent. Exclusion Criteria: 1. History of inflammatory bowel disease, bacterial colitis, or other preoperative colonic inflammatory disease. 2. Requirement for emergency surgery due to intestinal obstruction, perforation, bleeding, or other emergency conditions. 3. Pregnant or lactating women. 4. Presence of clinically significant gut microbiota dysbiosis before enrollment, as judged by the investigator. 5. Planned postoperative radiotherapy, chemotherapy, or chemoradiotherapy. 6. Poor compliance, inability to tolerate the intervention, or judged by the investigator to be unsuitable for participation in this clinical study. 7. Severe postoperative complications such as anastomotic leakage.
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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
-
Peking University People's Hospital
Beijing, Beijing Municipality, 100044, China
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