New combo attack on liver metastases from nasopharyngeal cancer enters human trials
NCT ID NCT06788002
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jul 08, 2026 · Updated 3 times
Summary
This phase 2 trial tests whether adding low-dose radiation to standard chemoimmunotherapy can better control liver tumors in people with nasopharyngeal carcinoma that has spread to the liver. The study will enroll 26 adults aged 18 to 70. Participants will receive low-dose radiation to the liver for 5 days, followed by chemotherapy (gemcitabine and cisplatin) plus an immunotherapy drug (penpulimab). The main goal is to see how long liver tumors stay under control.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- low-dose radiation, gemcitabine, cisplatin, penpulimab
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could offer a more effective first-line treatment for nasopharyngeal cancer that has spread to the liver, potentially improving control of liver tumors and overall survival.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-phase trial with only 26 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. Adding radiation to chemoimmunotherapy could increase side effects, and the treatment may not work as hoped.
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 26 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jan 2025
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2027
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 to 70 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. Age ≥ 18 years and ≤ 70 years, male or non-pregnant female. 2. Histologically confirmed with nonkeratinizing carcinoma of the nasopharynx (differentiated or undifferentiated type, WHO II or III) 3. Stage IVB (AJCC 8th edition staging) 4. De novo nasopharyngeal carcinoma with liver metastasis, or patients who had received curative treatment (radical radiotherapy or radical radiotherapy combined with chemotherapy) and developed liver metastasis more than 6 months after treatment completion. 5. ECOG performance status: 0 or 1 6. Must have at least one measurable lesion (assessed according to RECIST v1.1) 7. Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) ≥ 1.5 × 10\^9/L; platelets ≥ 100 × 10\^9/L; hemoglobin ≥ 90 g/L. 8. International normalized ratio (INR) or prothrombin time (PT) ≤ 1.5 × upper limit of normal (ULN); activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) ≤ 1.5 × ULN 9. Serum creatinine ≤ 1.5 × ULN or estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) ≥ 60 mL/min. 10. Serum total bilirubin ≤ 1.5 × ULN (patients with Gilbert's syndrome may be included if total bilirubin \< 3 × ULN); AST and ALT ≤ 5 × ULN (because of liver metastasis) Exclusion Criteria: 1. Patients with tumor recurrence at the primary site who have previously received radical radiotherapy. 2. Tumor invasion involving major blood vessels, with a high risk of significant bleeding as assessed by the investigator. 3. Systemic anticancer therapy, including hormone therapy, administered within 28 days prior to the initiation of the study treatment. 4. Previous treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors (e.g., PD-1/PD-L1, CTLA-4). 5. Patients with active autoimmune diseases or a history of autoimmune diseases with a risk of recurrence. 6. Known history of other malignancies (except cured basal cell carcinoma or carcinoma in situ of the cervix). 7. Conditions requiring systemic corticosteroid therapy (equivalent to \>10 mg/day of prednisone or similar medications) or other immunosuppressive therapy within ≤14 days prior to treatment. 8. Uncontrolled diabetes or laboratory abnormalities ≥Grade 1 in potassium, sodium, or corrected calcium levels despite standard treatment, or ≥Grade 3 hypoalbuminemia within ≤14 days before treatment. 9. History of the following diseases: interstitial lung disease, non-infectious pneumonitis, or uncontrolled diseases, including pulmonary fibrosis or acute lung disease. 10. Severe chronic or active infections requiring systemic antibiotics, antifungals, or antivirals within ≤14 days before the first dose of the investigational drug (including tuberculosis infection). 11. Known history of HIV infection. 12. Untreated chronic hepatitis B patients or hepatitis B virus (HBV) carriers with HBV DNA ≥500 IU/mL, or active hepatitis C virus (HCV) carriers. 13. Any major surgery requiring general anesthesia within ≤28 days prior to treatment. 14. Previous allogeneic stem cell transplantation or organ transplantation. 15. Any cardiovascular risk factors, including: cardiac chest pain that restricts daily instrumental activities ≤28 days before treatment. Symptomatic pulmonary embolism within ≤3 months before treatment. Acute myocardial infarction within ≤6 months before treatment. History of heart failure meeting New York Heart Association (NYHA) Class III or IV within ≤6 months before treatment. Grade ≥2 ventricular arrhythmias within ≤6 months before treatment. History of cerebrovascular accident within ≤6 months before the first dose of the investigational drug. 16. Evident bleeding tendencies or clinically significant bleeding symptoms ≤28 days prior to randomization, including but not limited to gastrointestinal bleeding, nasal bleeding (excluding epistaxis or retrograde blood-stained nasal discharge), and persistent bleeding disorders or coagulopathy. 17. Known allergy to any component of the investigational drug or a history of severe hypersensitivity to other monoclonal antibodies. 18. Peripheral neuropathy of Grade ≥2 as defined by NCI CTCAE v5.0. 19. Administration of live vaccines within ≤4 weeks prior to treatment. 20. Underlying medical conditions (including laboratory abnormalities) or alcohol/drug abuse or dependency that could impair drug administration, interpretation of drug toxicity, or adverse events (AEs), or could compromise study compliance or execution. 21. Pregnant or breastfeeding women. 22. Other factors deemed by the investigator that could lead to the premature termination of the study, such as other severe illnesses, significant laboratory abnormalities, or family/social factors that could affect participant safety or the collection of study data.
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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
8 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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Hunan Cancer Hospital
RECRUITINGChangsha, Hunan, 410013, China
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Hunan Cancer Hospital
RECRUITINGChangsha, Hunan, 410013, China
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Hunan University of Medicine General Hospital
RECRUITINGHuaihua, Hunan, China
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The Central Hospital of Shaoyang
RECRUITINGShaoyang, Hunan, 422000, China
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The First People's Hospital of Chenzhou
RECRUITINGChenzhou, Hunan, 424300, China
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Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University,
RECRUITINGChangsha, Hunan, 410000, China
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Xiangya Hospital of Central South University
RECRUITINGChangsha, Hunan, 410000, China
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Yueyang Central Hospital
RECRUITINGYueyang, Hunan, 414020, China
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- Can a Platinum-Free regimen beat nasopharyngeal carcinoma?
- Could a baking soda rinse tame radiation mouth sores?
- New drug duo aims to keep advanced nasopharyngeal cancer in check
- New surveillance strategy aims to catch residual cancer early in High-Risk nasopharyngeal carcinoma
- New combo strategy aims to catch and remove leftover cancer after radiation