New drug combo aims to tame liver side effects of cancer immunotherapy
NCT ID NCT07663422
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Sep 18, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study tests whether combining mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) with prednisone can better treat liver inflammation caused by checkpoint inhibitor cancer drugs. The trial includes adults with moderate to severe immune-related hepatitis who need to pause their cancer therapy. The main goal is to see if liver function improves within 30 days while safely reducing steroid use.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- mycophenolate mofetil plus prednisone
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this combination could become a standard first-line treatment for immune-related hepatitis, allowing patients to better manage this side effect and potentially continue cancer therapy.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small Phase 2 study with only 31 participants, so results may not apply broadly. The treatment carries risks of infection and other side effects, and it may not improve liver function 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 31 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jul 2026
- 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: * Patients must be ≥ 18 years at the time of irAE diagnosis and must have been diagnosed with a solid tumor or hematologic malignancy being treated with non-curative intent. * Patients must be diagnosed or presumed to have by a treating Medical Oncology or Hematology-Oncology clinician with immune-related hepatitis, G2-G3 (as defined in section 11.0), with plan for at least temporary interruption of IO therapy and initiation of corticosteroid treatment. * Patients must have been previously treated for any malignancy with at least one dose of an IO agent targeting the Programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1)/programmed death-ligand 1 (PDL-1) or CTLA-4 axis. IO use may have occurred at any time prior to diagnosis of irAE. * Serum aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and total bilirubin must have been measured within screening window outlined in Section 8.0 (Study Calendar). * Patient must be able to take study medications by mouth. * Baseline hemoglobin (HgB) at time of enrollment ≥8.0 g/dL, absolute neutrophil count (ANC) ≥ 1500/mm3, and platelet count ≥ 100,000/mm3 without red blood cell or platelet transfusion in the two weeks preceding measurement of lab values. Lab values are to be assessed within screening window outlined in Section 8.0 (Study Calendar). * Baseline estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate (eGFR) \< 30 mL/min/1.73m2 * Patients must be able to understand and willing to sign a written informed consent and HIPAA consent document. Exclusion Criteria: * Patients previously treated for irAE hepatitis. * Patients diagnosed or presumed to have G4 immune-related hepatitis. * Patients receiving renal replacement therapy with hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis at time of enrollment. * Patients with a documented history of Child-Turcotte-Pugh class B and C liver dysfunction. * Patients with significant liver dysfunction at time of presentation, as defined by an otherwise unexplained change in mental status or International Normalized Ratio (INR) ≥ 1.5 attributed to synthetic liver dysfunction. * Patients with active hepatitis B (HBV), hepatitis C (HCV), or tuberculosis. Confirmatory testing for these infections may be performed if no recent result is available in the patient's records and, in the opinion of the treating physician, such testing is clinically warranted. Past HBV is exclusionary. Patients with treated HCV infection and documented eradication are eligible to enroll. * Patients with uncontrolled human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), cytomegalovirus (CMV), herpes simplex virus (HSV), or Varicella-zoster virus (VZV). Confirmatory testing for these infections is not required. * Patients with a history of gastrointestinal bleeding, ulceration, or perforations within one year of trial enrollment. Use of proton-pump inhibitor therapy is allowed. * Patients with any history of solid organ or allogeneic stem cell transplantation. * Patients with type I diabetes mellitus (DM). * Patients with type II DM with most recent glycated hemoglobin measurement greater than or equal to 9.0%. * Patients with a documented history of phosphoribosyl-transferase deficiency. * History of allergic reactions to MMF, prednisone, methylprednisolone, or dexamethasone. * Patients with decompensated congestive heart failure at time of enrollment, at the discretion of treating clinician, regardless of ejection fraction. * Patients with history of suicidal ideation or past suicide attempt. * Uncontrolled or intercurrent severe medical illness at the time of enrollment, as defined below: 1. Patients being treated with vasopressors 2. Patient requiring mechanical ventilation or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation 3. Patients being treated with parenteral antibiotic, antifungal, or antiviral medications * Patients with chronic autoimmune diseases requiring long-term immunosuppressive treatment at the time of enrollment, or for whom the mechanism of index inflammatory changes is too uncertain to initiate irAE-directed treatment at the discretion of treating provider. * Patients with congenital (e.g. combine variable immunodeficiency) or acquired (e.g. chronic leukemia) immunodeficiency requiring long-term prophylactic antimicrobial treatment at time of enrollment (e.g. intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg), prophylactic antiviral treatment, etc.) * Women of child-bearing potential (WOCBP) who are pregnant or breast-feeding. * Patients unable to commit to use of reliable contraception throughout the study period.
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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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Fox Chase Cancer Center
RECRUITINGPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, 19111, United States
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- New combo aims to boost immunotherapy in elderly melanoma patients
- New hope for cancer patients: drug may cut steroid need for immunotherapy side effect