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Can sound waves boost immunotherapy in breast cancer?

NCT ID NCT03237572

What the study statuses mean

This study's is highlighted.

Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early This study
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This early study tested combining high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) with the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab (Keytruda) in 13 people with metastatic breast cancer. The goal was to see if the ultrasound could help the immune system better recognize and attack tumors. The trial was terminated early, so the findings are limited.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) and high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU)
What this could lead to
If this approach works, it could point toward a way to make immunotherapy more effective for hard-to-treat metastatic breast cancer.
What could go wrong
This was a very small, early-phase trial that was terminated early, so results are limited. The combination may not improve outcomes or could cause added side effects.

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

Phase 1

The first testing in people. Mainly checks safety and dose, usually in a small group.

Participants

13 people

The number who actually took part.

Started

Sep 2017

Finished

Jun 2022

Lead sponsor

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

18 years and older

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

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

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria (summary): * Histologically confirmed metastatic or unresectable breast cancer * Any receptor status (estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, HER2 receptor). Patients who are HR+ should also no longer be candidates for hormonal-based therapy. Patients who are HER2+ should have progressed on or no longer be candidates for available HER2 directed therapy. Hormonal therapy must be stopped prior to day 1 of treatment. * Patients must have had at least one prior line of therapy for breast cancer in the metastatic setting. * Patients must have an accessible lesion in the breast/chest wall/axilla which has not been previously thermally ablated. Prior breast irradiation is acceptable if the lesion has recurred or grown following radiation. * Patients must agree to use an adequate method of contraception for the course of the study through 120 days after the last dose of study medication. * Patients must have at least one target lesion in breast/chest wall/axilla which is amenable to application of high intensity focused ultrasound: * Patients must be willing to provide tissue from a newly obtained core or excisional biopsy of a tumor lesion. * Performance status of 0 or 1 on the ECOG Performance Scale. * Adequate organ function Exclusion Criteria (summary): * Patients currently participating and receiving study therapy or patients who have participated in a study of an investigational agent and received study therapy or used an investigational device within 4 weeks of the first dose of treatment. * Patients with a diagnosis of immunodeficiency, patients receiving systemic steroid therapy or, patients who have received any other form of immunosuppressive therapy within 7 days prior to the first dose of trial treatment. * Patients with a known history of active Tuberculosis * Hypersensitivity to pembrolizumab or any of its excipients * Prior anti-cancer monoclonal antibody (mAb) within 4 weeks prior to study Day 1. Patients who have not recovered (i.e., ≤ Grade 1 or at baseline) from adverse events due to agents administered more than 4 weeks earlier are excluded. * Prior chemotherapy, targeted small molecule therapy, or radiation therapy within 2 weeks prior to study Day 1. Patients who has not recovered (i.e., ≤ Grade 1 or at baseline) from adverse events due to a previously administered agent. * Known additional malignancy that is progressing or requires active treatment. Exceptions include basal cell carcinoma of the skin or squamous cell carcinoma of the skin that has undergone potentially curative therapy or in situ cervical cancer. * Known active central nervous system (CNS) metastases and/or carcinomatous meningitis. * Active autoimmune disease that has required systemic treatment in the past 2 years. * History of (non-infectious) pneumonitis that required steroids or current pneumonitis. * Active infection requiring systemic therapy. * Pregnancy * Prior therapy with an anti-PD-1, anti-PD-L1, or anti-PD-L2 agent within the prior 24 weeks. * Known history of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) * Receipt of a live vaccine within 30 days of planned start of study therapy. * HIFU must not be applied to a breast with an implant. A region outside of the breast may be targeted as long as the targeted area is at least 10mm away from an implant.

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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

  • University of Virginia

    Charlottesville, Virginia, 22908, United States

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