Guarana: a natural energy boost for cancer fatigue?
NCT ID NCT07151391
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Aug 07, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This phase 2 trial tests whether guarana, a natural supplement from the Amazon, can reduce fatigue in 86 people with neuroendocrine tumors or gynecologic cancers. Participants take either guarana or a placebo daily for up to 42 days, and researchers measure changes in fatigue using standard questionnaires. The goal is to see if guarana offers a safe, simple way to improve energy and quality of life.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- guarana (Paullinia cupana) taken as a 500 mg oral capsule daily
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a natural, low-cost option to reduce fatigue in people with these cancers, improving daily life.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-phase trial (86 people) testing a supplement, not a proven drug. Fatigue is subjective, and results may not be strong or lasting. Side effects are possible.
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 2
Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.
- Participants
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About 86 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Sep 2025
- Expected to finish
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Sep 2028
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 years and older
- 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: * Subjects aged ≥ 18 years. * Cohort A (Neuroendocrine Tumor) Only: ---Subjects with unresected locally advanced or metastatic well differentiated neuroendocrine tumors who are either on a watch- and-wait approach or receiving treatment with somatostatin analog(s). Patient who received and completed another active treatment but are on a "break" from treatment will be allowed to enroll (e.g., patients that had completed PRRT). * Cohort B (Gynecological Cancer) Only: ---Subjects with early-stage (I or II) ovarian/fallopian-tube cancer in surveillance who have completed all treatment or are receiving adjuvant treatment. * Or ---Subjects with endometrial cancer which is low risk, low-intermediate risk in surveillance, or high-intermediate risk receiving brachytherapy. Risk category is based on GOG criteria. * ECOG Performance Status ≤ 2. * Documentation of a score of 4 or higher when answering either of the NCCN-recommended screening questions ("How exhausted do you feel on a scale of 0 to 10?" or "How impaired do you feel by this fatigue on a scale of 0 to 10?") within 4 weeks prior to randomization * Adequate organ function as defined as: * Hematologic: * Hemoglobin ≥ 9 g/dL * Hepatic: * Total Bilirubin ≤ 1.5x institutional upper limit of normal (ULN) or ≤3 x ULN with documented liver involvement and/or Gilbert's disease * AST(SGOT)/ALT(SGPT) ≤ 3 × institutional ULN ----Subjects with liver metastases will be allowed to enroll with AST and ALT levels ≤ 5 x ULN. * Renal: ---Estimated creatinine clearance ≥ 30 mL/min by Cockcroft-Gault formula * For female subjects: Negative pregnancy test or evidence of post-menopausal status. The post-menopausal status will be defined as having been amenorrheic for 12 months without an alternative medical cause or having undergone surgical sterilization (bilateral oophorectomy or hysterectomy). The following age-specific requirements apply: * Women \< 50 years of age: ----Amenorrheic for ≥ 12 months following cessation of exogenous hormonal treatments; and luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone levels in the post-menopausal range for the institution; or ----Underwent surgical sterilization (bilateral oophorectomy or hysterectomy). * Women ≥ 50 years of age: * Amenorrheic for 12 months or more following cessation of all exogenous hormonal treatments and luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone levels in the post-menopausal range for the institution; or Amenorrhea for 24 months following cessation of all exogenous hormonal treatments, if applicable; or * Had radiation-induced menopause with last menses \>1 year ago; or * Had chemotherapy-induced menopause with last menses \>1 year ago; or * Underwent surgical sterilization (bilateral oophorectomy, bilateral salpingectomy, or hysterectomy). * Female subjects of childbearing potential and male subjects with a sexual partner of childbearing potential must agree to use a highly effective method of contraception. * Able to provide informed consent and willing to sign an approved consent form that conforms to federal and institutional guidelines. Exclusion Criteria: * For the Neuroendocrine Tumor cohort: Receiving treatment with Cytotoxic Chemotherapy, Radiation Therapy, PRRT or TKIs within 6 weeks prior to the first dose of study treatment. * For the Gynecological Cancer cohort: Receiving any systemic treatment besides those listed in Inclusion 3-Cohort B (Gyn only) within 6 weeks prior to the first dose of study treatment. * Untreated or uncontrolled endocrinopathy which is likely to significantly impact study participation. * History of significant autoimmune disease in the opinion of the investigator that is likely to significantly impact study participation. * Prior use of guarana supplements within two months of consent. * Self-reported "caffeine sensitivity" defined as excessive unwanted feelings of anxiousness, jitteriness, difficulty sleeping, or anxiety after caffeine exposure, which in the opinion of the Investigator is likely to negatively impact study participation. * Concurrent use of psychostimulants (e.g., lisdexamfetamine, methylphenidate). * Major surgery within 4 weeks prior to starting study therapy or subjects who have not fully recovered from major surgery. * The diagnosis of another malignancy which, in the opinion of the investigator, is likely to negatively impact subject safety or study aims. * Known brain metastases or cranial epidural disease. --Note: Subjects with brain metastases or cranial epidural disease adequately treated with radiotherapy and/or surgery and stable for at least 4 weeks before the first dose of study treatment will be allowed on trial. Subjects must be neurologically asymptomatic and without corticosteroid treatment at the time of the first dose of study treatment. * Current evidence of uncontrolled, significant intercurrent illness including, but not limited to, the following conditions: --Cardiovascular disorders: * Significant symptomatic carcinoid heart disease in the opinion of the investigator * Congestive heart failure New York Heart Association Class III or IV, unstable angina pectoris, serious cardiac arrhythmias. * Stroke (including transient ischemic attack \[TIA\]), myocardial infarction (MI), or other ischemic events) within 3 months before the first dose. * Thromboembolic events (eg, deep venous thrombosis, pulmonary embolism) within 1 month before the first dose. * QTc prolongation defined as a QTcF \> 500 ms. * Known congenital long QT. * Uncontrolled hypertension per investigator assessment or grade 3 hypertension per CTCAE v.5.0 * Any other condition that would, in the Investigator's judgment, contraindicate the subject's participation in the clinical study due to safety concerns or compliance with clinical study procedures (e.g., infection/inflammation, intestinal obstruction, unable to swallow medication, \[subjects may not receive the therapy through a feeding tube\], social/ psychological issues, etc.) * Known HIV infection with a detectable viral load within 6 months of the anticipated start of treatment. --Note: Subjects on effective antiretroviral therapy with an undetectable viral load within 6 months of the anticipated start of treatment are eligible for this trial. * Known active infection including tuberculosis (clinical evaluation that includes clinical history, physical examination, radiographic findings, and TB testing in line with local practice), hepatitis B (known positive HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) result), or hepatitis C. --Note: Subjects with a past or resolved HBV infection (defined as the presence of hepatitis B core antibody \[anti-HBc\] and absence of HBsAg) are eligible. Subjects positive for hepatitis C (HCV) antibody are eligible only if polymerase chain reaction is negative for HCV RNA. * Medical, psychiatric, cognitive, or other conditions that may compromise the subject's ability to understand the subject information, give informed consent, comply with the study protocol or complete the study. * Known hypersensitivity or allergy to investigational product (IP). * Subjects taking prohibited medications as described in Section 6.6.2 or medications for which caffeine intake is contraindicated including: β-adrenergic agonists, and/or medications that contain pseudoephedrine. A washout period of prohibited medications for a period of at least five half-lives or as clinically indicated should occur before the start of treatment.
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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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Huntsman Cancer Institute at University of Utah
RECRUITINGSalt Lake City, Utah, 84112, United States
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