Could a single chemo drug beat the standard combo for this rare cancer?
NCT ID NCT02670707
First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 26, 2026
Summary
This phase 3 trial compares two chemotherapy approaches for children and young adults with Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH), a rare cancer that can damage tissues. One group gets the standard two-drug combo (vinblastine/prednisone), while the other gets a single drug called cytarabine. The study aims to see which treatment better prevents the disease from getting worse or coming back over one year, and also looks at genetic markers that might predict response.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Cytarabine (chemotherapy drug)
- What this could lead to
- If cytarabine works better than the current standard, it could become a new frontline treatment for LCH, potentially reducing relapse and improving survival.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early-stage comparison; cytarabine may not prove superior and could have side effects like low blood counts. The trial is still recruiting, so results are years away.
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 3
Large-scale testing in a bigger group. Usually the last step before a treatment can be approved.
- Participants
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About 124 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Mar 2016
- Expected to finish
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Jan 2029
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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Up to 21 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. Patient must have biopsy-confirmed diagnosis of Langerhans cell histiocytosis. 2. Patient must be between 0-21 years of age. 3. Patient must have a Karnofsky performance score ≥ 50% or Lansky performance score ≥ 50%. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Patient may not have received any prior systemic cytotoxic or other chemotherapies for LCH or any other malignant disorder prior to the initiation of protocol therapy on TXCH LCH0115 with the exception of: Steroid pretreatment: Systemic glucocorticosteroids (prednisone, methylprednisone, dexamethasone, etc.) for less than or equal to 120 hours (5 days) in the 7 days prior to initiating protocol therapy or for less than or equal to 336 hours (14 days) in the 28 days before the initiation of protocol therapy does not affect eligibility. The dose of steroid previously given does not affect eligibility. Patients who have only received surgical or radiation therapy, intralesional injection of steroids, inhalational steroids, systemic mineralocorticoids (hydrocortisone), or topical steroids may also be enrolled. 2. Patient may not have disease limited to a single skin or bone site, with the following exceptions: * Central Nervous System (CNS) risk lesions/special site disease: patients with single bone sites that are CNS-risk (sphenoid, mastoid, orbital, zygomatic, ethmoid, maxillary, or temporal bones, the cranial fossa, pituitary gland or neurodegenerative disease) or are "special sites" (odontoid peg, vertebral lesion with intraspinal soft tissue extension) require systemic therapy as standard of care and thus are eligible for the study. * Functionally critical lesions: A single lesion not described above which may cause "functionally critical anatomic abnormality" wherein attempts at local therapy (such as surgical curettage or radiation) would cause unacceptable morbidity. These patients may be enrolled with written approval of the Coordinating Center PI or Vice-Chair and documentation of the rationale justifying systemic therapy. * Asynchronous multisite LCH presentation: A patient may also have any single site of disease involvement at the time of enrollment if they previously had at least one other site of LCH disease in the past (which may have been treated with local therapy/surgery as described), as long as no systemic therapy was previously given per protocol guidelines. 3. Patient may not have severe renal disease (creatinine greater than 3 times normal for age OR creatinine clearance \< 50 ml/m2/1.73m\^2). 4. Patient may not have severe hepatic disease (direct bilirubin greater than 3 mg/dl OR aspartate aminotransferase (AST) greater than 500 IU/L), unless hepatic injury is due to LCH. 5. Female patients may not be pregnant or breastfeeding. 6. Patients of reproductive potential not willing to use an adequate method of birth control for the duration of the study. 7. Patients who are HIV positive may not be enrolled. NOTE: Patients excluded for laboratory abnormalities or performance score only may be enrolled on the study with written approval from the Coordinating Center PI or Vice-Chair.
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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
10 sites. 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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Children's Hospital of San Antonio
RECRUITINGSan Antonio, Texas, 78207, United States
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Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters
RECRUITINGNorfolk, Virginia, 23507, United States
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Cook Children's Health Care System
RECRUITINGFort Worth, Texas, 76104, United States
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Dell Children's Medical Center
RECRUITINGAustin, Texas, 78723, United States
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Lehigh Valley Health Network- Cedar Crest
RECRUITINGAllentown, Pennsylvania, 18103, United States
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Nationwide Children's Hospital
RECRUITINGColumbus, Ohio, 43205, United States
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Rady Children's Hospital - San Diego
RECRUITINGSan Diego, California, 92123, United States
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Stanford Children's Hospital, Lucile Packard Children's Hospital
RECRUITINGPalo Alto, California, 94304, United States
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Texas Children's Hospital
RECRUITINGHouston, Texas, 77030, United States
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University of Minnesota/Masonic Cancer Center
WITHDRAWNMinneapolis, Minnesota, 55455, United States
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Vannie Cook Children's Clinic
RECRUITINGMcAllen, Texas, 78503, United States
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