Can a pill rewrite the genetic story of resistant kidney cancer?
NCT ID NCT07748988
First seen Aug 06, 2026 · Last updated Aug 20, 2026 · Updated 3 times
Summary
This pilot study tests whether the experimental drug casdatifan can alter the activity of genes controlled by HIF-2α in people with advanced clear cell kidney cancer that has stopped responding to prior treatments. Participants take casdatifan daily, and researchers analyze tumor biopsies taken before, during, and after treatment to see how gene expression shifts. The goal is to understand how the drug works and why some tumors may resist it, potentially guiding smarter use of this therapy in the future.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- casdatifan (AB521), an oral HIF-2α inhibitor
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could reveal how casdatifan works in resistant kidney cancer and guide future combination therapies or patient selection.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very early, small pilot study focused on biological changes, not clinical outcomes. Results may not predict treatment effectiveness, and tumor biopsies carry procedural risks.
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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Early phase 1
The earliest testing in people: a first look at safety, in a very small group.
- Participants
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About 12 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Jul 2029
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Jan 2031
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 100 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. Signed and dated written informed consent. 2. Male or female ≥ 18 years of age on the day of signing informed consent. 3. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0-2 4. Histologically confirmed metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) 5. Patients must have received at least one immune oncology (IO) agent and at least one VEGF-targeted therapy (alone or in combination) 6. Measurable tumor burden which can be followed by computed tomography (CT) scan or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), based on RECIST 1.1 as assessed by the local site investigator 7. At least one metastatic lesion that is amenable to percutaneous biopsy 8. Adequate organ and bone marrow function resulted ≤ 28 days prior to first dose of protocol-indicated treatment: * Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) ≥ 1500/µL. * Platelets ≥ 100,000/µL. * Hemoglobin ≥ 10.0 g/dL or ≥ 6.2 mmol/L. * Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) ≥ 30 mL/min (as calculated by the Cockcroft-Gault Formula or calculated/measured by an alternative established institutional standard consistently applied across participants). * Total bilirubin ≤ 1.5 times institutional upper limit of normal (ULN), or direct bilirubin ≤ ULN for participants with total bilirubin \> 1.5 xULN. * AST (SGOT) and ALT (SGPT) ≤ 2.5 times institutional upper limit of normal (ULN) 9. Women must not be breastfeeding and further agree to not breastfeed during study treatment; and for at least 7 days after patient's final dose of casdatifan. 10. A woman of childbearing potential (WOCBP) - see Appendix 3 for definition of WOCBP - must have a negative serum or urine pregnancy test during screening within 28 days prior to receiving first dose of protocol-indicated treatment, and must agree to follow instructions for using acceptable contraception (Appendix 3) from the time of signing consent, and until at least 7 days after her final dose of casdatifan. 11. Men must refrain from donating sperm for at least 7 days after patient's final dose of casdatifan. 12. A man able to father children (see Appendix 3 for definition) who is sexually active with a WOCBP must agree to follow instructions for using acceptable contraception (Appendix 3), from the time of signing consent, and until at least 7 days after his final dose of casdatifan. 13. No exercise-induced desaturation on a 6-minute walk test, defined as a blood oxygen saturation by pulse oximetry ≤ 88%. 14. No active pneumonitis at screening as assessed by CT scan. 15. No medical history of severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). 16. If a participant has CNS metastases the participant must meet the following criteria: * Participants with previously treated brain metastases may participate provided they are clinically stable and without steroid treatment for at least 14 days prior to the first dose of study treatment. Participants with carcinomatous meningitis are excluded. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Prior treatment with HIF 2α inhibitors (e.g. belzutifan or related agents) 2. Is currently participating in or within 2 weeks prior to receiving first dose of study treatment in a study of an investigational agent or investigational device. • Participants who have entered the follow-up phase of an investigational study may participate as long as it has been 2 weeks after the last dose or last exposure to the previous investigational agent or investigational device. 3. Known severe hypersensitivity (≥ Grade 3) to any of the excipients of casdatifan. 4. History of myocarditis or pericarditis or other known underlying heart disease that is clinically significant by investigator judgment (for example, cardiomyopathy, congestive heart failure with New York Heart Association \[NYHA\] functional classification III or IV, symptomatic arrhythmia not controlled by medication, unstable angina, history of acute myocardial infarction). History of cerebrovascular accident (including TIA) within the past 6 months (24 weeks) prior to starting study treatment. 5. Uncontrolled intercurrent illness including, but not limited to, ongoing or active infection/sepsis, interstitial lung disease, recent hospitalizations with unresolved symptoms, poorly controlled hypertension, or psychiatric illness/social situations that would limit compliance with study requirements. 6. Inability to swallow study treatment. 7. Contraindications to biopsy (e.g. bleeding diathesis, uncorrectable coagulopathy)
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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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Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Nashville, Tennessee, 37232, United States
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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