New drug could unlock kidney transplants for sensitized kids
NCT ID NCT05753930
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Aug 19, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This trial tests a drug called imlifidase in highly sensitized children aged 1-17 who need a kidney transplant. The drug aims to quickly clear antibodies that would normally cause rejection, turning a positive crossmatch negative and allowing the transplant to happen. Researchers will check if the drug works and how well the new kidney functions over time.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- imlifidase
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could help highly sensitized children receive a kidney transplant that would otherwise be impossible due to immune rejection.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-phase trial with only 10 participants. The drug may not work for all, and there are risks from the transplant and immune-suppressing medications.
Why investors are watching
Hansa Biopharma is testing imlifidase in a small Phase 2 trial with 10 highly sensitized children who need a kidney transplant. The drug aims to turn a positive crossmatch negative, which would allow these children to receive a transplant they otherwise could not. For a micro-cap company, this readout matters because it tests the drug in a new, younger patient group, and success could broaden the drug's use beyond adults.
If it works: A positive result could show imlifidase works in children, expanding its potential market and strengthening the company's position in kidney transplantation. It might also support regulatory discussions for a pediatric indication.
If it fails: The trial could fail to convert crossmatches or show poor kidney function, which would hurt the drug's prospects in children. With only 10 participants, the trial may also face delays or inconclusive results, and pediatric trials often struggle to enroll.
AI-written from the trial record. Speculative, and not investment advice.
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 10 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jun 2023
- Expected to finish
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Aug 2031
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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A company
The lead sponsor is a pharmaceutical, biotech, or medical-device company.
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 17 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 Informed Consent obtained from patient/parent/legal guardian/independent witness (depending on patient's age) before any trial-related procedures 2. Highly sensitised patient with panel reactive antibodies (PRA) ≥80% 3. Male or female patient between the age of 1 to 17 years (up to the day before the 18th birthday) at the time of screening 4. Patient with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and waiting for a renal transplant from a living or deceased donor 5. Patient must be transplantable (including size mismatch) at the time of obtaining informed consent for trial participation 6. Patients who have previously undergone desensitisation unsuccessfully with plasmapheresis/IVIg/anti-CD20 or have an anti-HLA antibody status deemed too difficult to make a successful desensitisation (judgement based on physicians' previous experience with similar patients) 7. Positive crossmatch (XM) test determined by flow cytometry crossmatch (FCXM) and/or complement-dependent cytotoxicity crossmatch (CDCXM) tests against the donor. For the DD patients, if physical XM tests are not practically possible due to lack of time, patients may be included on a virtual crossmatch (vXM) predictive of a positive XM test. 8. Willingness and ability to comply with the protocol as judged by the investigator Exclusion Criteria: 1. Previous treatment with imlifidase 2. IVIg treatment within 28 days prior to imlifidase treatment 3. Desensitisation treatment(s) within 1 month prior to the current transplantation 4. Hypersensitivity to the active substance (imlifidase) or to any of the excipients and to other immunosuppressive drugs specified in the protocol 5. Ongoing serious infections 6. Present, or history of, thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP), or known familial history of TTP 7. At the time of transplantation: severe other condition requiring treatment and close monitoring e.g. cardiac failure ≥ grade 4 (New York Heart Association), unstable coronary disease, active peripheral vascular disease, proven hypercoagulable conditions/events or oxygen dependent respiratory disease 8. Malignancy within 3 years prior to transplantation 9. ABO blood group incompatible transplantations (A2 and A2B kidneys will not be accepted for B recipients) 10. Any other reason that, in the view of the investigator, precludes transplantation 11. Breast feeding or pregnancy, if applicable 12. Woman of fertile age and sexually active without adequate contraceptive measures to avoid pregnancy during the interventional trial period (i.e. up to 6 months after transplantation) 13. Suspicion of Covid-19 infection or positive severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) test 14. Positive serology for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) 15. Clinical signs of hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), cytomegalovirus (CMV), or Epstein Barr virus (EBV) infection 16. Donor with positive serology for HIV, HBV, HCV or CMV to a patient with negative serology (mismatch serology). Mismatch serology for EBV in accordance with center specific standard procedures for transplantation of EBV negative recipients and at investigator's discretion. 17. Clinically relevant active infection(s) as judged by the investigator 18. Tuberculosis or history of tuberculosis 19. Use of other investigational agents within 5 terminal elimination half-lives prior to the transplantation 20. Contemporaneous participation in medical device studies 21. Known mental incapacity or language barriers precluding patients'/parents'/legal guardians' adequate understanding of the informed consent information and the trial activities 22. Inability by the judgement of the investigator to participate in the trial for any other reason
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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 study's own enquiry address
This study publishes an address for enquiries. See it below .
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The places running it
5 sites in 4 countries. 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
Show contact details
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Study contacts
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Contact
Email: •••••@•••••
Locations
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Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust
RECRUITINGLondon, WC1N 3JH, United Kingdom
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HUS, Helsinki University Hospital
WITHDRAWNHelsinki, 00290, Finland
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Hospital Sant Joan De Deu Barcelona
NOT_YET_RECRUITINGBarcelona, 08950, Spain
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Hospital Unviersitari Vall d'Hebron, Nefrología Pediátrica
RECRUITINGBarcelona, 08035, Spain
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Karolinska University Hospital
RECRUITINGHuddinge, Stockholm County, SE-141 86, Sweden
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Robert Debre University Hospital
RECRUITINGParis, 75019, France
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