Engineered immune cells take on childhood cancer
NCT ID NCT03294954
First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 26, 2026
Summary
This early-stage trial tests a new approach for children with neuroblastoma that has come back or not responded to standard treatment. Researchers take the child's own natural killer T cells, add genes to help them recognize and attack neuroblastoma cells, and give them back along with a drug called Etanercept. The goal is to find a safe dose and see if the cells can shrink tumors.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- GINAKIT cells (genetically modified natural killer T cells) with or without Etanercept
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could point toward a new treatment option for children with hard-to-treat neuroblastoma by using the body's own immune cells to attack the cancer.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early Phase 1 trial with only 70 participants, so it is too soon to know if it works. The modified cells may cause side effects or not shrink tumors, and combining them with Etanercept adds unknown 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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Phase 1
The first testing in people. Mainly checks safety and dose, usually in a small group.
- Participants
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About 70 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jan 2018
- Expected to finish
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Aug 2040
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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1 year 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.
Procurement Inclusion Criteria: 1. Relapsed or refractory high risk neuroblastoma 2. Life expectancy of at least 12 weeks 3. Age greater than 1 year and less than 21 years old 4. Karnofsky/Lansky score of 60% or greater 5. Absence of HAMA prior to enrollment (only in patients that have been previously treated with murine antibodies) 6. Ability to tolerate leukocyte apheresis 7. Informed consent and assent (as applicable) obtained from parent/guardian and child. 8. Patients must have an ANC greater than or equal to 500/µl, platelet count greater than or equal to 20,000/µl. Patients may be transfused to obtain a platelet count greater than or equal to 20,000/µl. 9. Pulse Ox greater than or equal to 90% on room air 10. Serum AST less than 3 times the upper limit of normal 11. Total Bilirubin less than 1.5 times the upper limit of normal 12. Creatinine \< 1.5 times the upper limit of normal 13. Recovered from the acute toxic effects of all prior chemotherapy based on the enrolling physician's assessment (if some effects of chemotherapy are expected to last long term, patient is eligible if meeting other eligibility criteria). 14. Weight greater than 12kg 15. Negative QuantiFERON-TB or T-SPOT testing within 3 months prior to procurement Procurement Exclusion Criteria: 1. Rapidly progressive disease 2. History or hypersensitivity to murine protein-containing products 3. Tumor causing airway obstruction 4. Currently receiving immunosuppressive drugs such as corticosteroids, tacrolimus or cyclosporine 5. Severe previous toxicity from cyclophosphamide or fludarabine based on the enrolling physician's assessment 6. HIV infection 7. History of hypersensitivity, anaphylaxis, and/or adverse event with Etanercept Treatment Inclusion Criteria: 1. Relapsed or refractory high risk neuroblastoma 2. Life expectancy of at least 12 weeks 3. Age greater than 1 year and less than 21 years old 4. Karnofsky/Lansky score of 60% or greater 5. Patients must have an ANC greater than or equal to 500/µl, platelet count greater than or equal to 20,000/µl. Patients may be transfused to obtain a platelet count greater than or equal to 20,000/µl. 6. Pulse Ox greater than or equal to 90% on room air 7. Serum AST less than 3 times the upper limit of normal 8. Total Bilirubin less than 1.5 times the upper limit of normal 9. Creatinine \< 1.5 times the upper limit of normal 10. Recovered from the acute toxic effects of all prior chemotherapy based on the enrolling physician's assessment (if some effects of chemotherapy are expected to last long term, patient is eligible if meeting other eligibility criteria and expected to tolerate lymphodepletion). 11. Absence of human anti-mouse antibodies (HAMA) prior to enrollment for patients who have received prior therapy with murine antibodies 12. Patients must have autologous transduced NKTs with greater than or equal to 20% expression of GD2-specific CAR. 13. Informed consent and assent (as applicable) obtained from parent/guardian and child. 14. Weight greater than 12kg 15. Negative QuantiFERON-TB or T-SPOT testing within 3 months prior to the start of LD Treatment Exclusion Criteria: 1. Rapidly progressive disease 2. Currently receiving any investigational drugs 3. History or hypersensitivity to murine protein-containing products 4. Cardiomegaly or bilateral pulmonary infiltrates on chest radiograph or CT. However, patients with cardiomegaly on imaging may be enrolled if they have an assessment of cardiac function (i.e., ECHO or MUGA) within 3 weeks of starting protocol therapy that is within normal limits. Additionally, patients with bilateral pulmonary infiltrates on imaging may be enrolled if the lesions are not consistent with active neuroblastoma (i.e., negative on functional imaging with PET or MIBG, or by pathologic assessment). 5. Tumor potentially causing airway obstruction 6. Pregnancy or lactation or not willing to use birth control 7. Currently receiving immunosuppressive drugs such as corticosteroids, tacrolimus or cyclosporine 8. Severe previous toxicity form cyclophosphamide or fludarabine based on the enrolling physician's assessment 9. HIV infection 10. History of hypersensitivity, anaphylaxis, and/or adverse event with Etanercept
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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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Texas Children's Hospital
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 shorter chemo combo tame High-Risk neuroblastoma?
- Can a radioactive 'Smart Bomb' take down resistant childhood cancers?