First-in-Human trial launches for Off-the-Shelf CAR-NK therapy against tough cancers
NCT ID NCT07366658
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This early-stage trial is testing a new cell therapy called NEUK203-13 for people with advanced small cell lung cancer or other neuroendocrine tumors that have not responded to standard treatments. The therapy uses immune cells (NK cells) made from stem cells and engineered to target a protein called DLL3 on cancer cells. The main goal is to check safety and tolerability, while also looking for early signs that the therapy might control tumor growth.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- NEUK203-13 injection (a CAR-NK cell therapy made from stem cells, targeting DLL3 on cancer cells)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a new treatment option for people with advanced small cell lung cancer or other neuroendocrine tumors that have stopped responding to standard therapy.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very early Phase 1 trial with only 9 participants, so the main goal is safety, not proof of effectiveness. The therapy may not shrink tumors, and there are risks like cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and nerve-related side effects (ICANS).
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 9 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Feb 2026
- Expected to finish
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Jan 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 75 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\. Understand and voluntarily sign the Informed Consent Form (ICF); * 2\. Aged ≥ 18 years and \< 75 years at the time of signing the ICF, regardless of gender; * 3\. Pathologically confirmed neuroendocrine tumors, including small cell lung cancer (SCLC), etc.; * 4\. Previous failure or intolerance to systemic therapy, or recurrence after remission: among them, patients with small cell lung cancer must have received at least platinum-based chemotherapy with or without PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors in previous treatments, with imaging evidence of disease progression after treatment; * 5\. Must provide tissue samples for biomarker analysis, preferably newly obtained tissues. For patients unable to provide newly obtained tissues, 4 unstained sections of archived formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissues can be provided (at least 1 patient with high DLL3 expression shall be enrolled in each dose group: high expression is defined as positive staining in ≥ 50% of tumor cells; preference is given to enrolling DLL3-positive patients); * 6\. Have at least one measurable lesion as the target lesion (per RECIST v1.1 criteria); * 7\. Expected survival ≥ 3 months; * 8\. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status score of 0-1; * 9\. Have adequate bone marrow reserve and organ function within 7 days before the first administration of NEUK203-13 Injection: * 10\. Sufficient bone marrow function (no supportive therapy within 14 days before the first administration): hemoglobin (Hb) ≥ 90 g/L, platelets (PLT) ≥ 75 × 10⁹/L, absolute neutrophil count (ANC) ≥ 1.5 × 10⁹/L; * 11\. Liver function: aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) ≤ 3 × upper limit of normal (ULN), total bilirubin (TBIL) \< 1.5 × ULN; * 12\. Renal function: serum creatinine (Scr) ≤ 1.5 × ULN and creatinine clearance rate (Ccr) ≥ 60 mL/min (calculated according to the Cockcroft-Gault formula); Coagulation function: prothrombin time (PT) ≤ 1.5 × ULN, international normalized ratio (INR) ≤ 2.0; * 13\. Female patients of childbearing potential or male patients whose partners are of childbearing potential agree to use highly effective contraceptive measures from any dose administration in the study until 6 months after the last dose of the study. Exclusion Criteria: * 1\. Mixed carcinoma with non-neuroendocrine tumor components; * 2\. Active brain metastases (patients with stable disease for 3 months after treatment without the need for continued glucocorticoid therapy are eligible for enrollment); known leptomeningeal metastases; isolated central nervous system (CNS) disease progression without evidence of progression outside the CNS; * 3\. A history of hypersensitivity to interleukin-2 (IL-2), fludarabine, cyclophosphamide, tocilizumab, or any component of the infusion product formulation; or patients with a history of specific allergic disorders (asthma, rubella, eczematous dermatitis); * 4\. Prior receipt of any of the following treatments: * 5\. Any systemic antineoplastic therapy within 4 weeks or 5 half-lives prior to the first administration of NEUK203-13 Injection, whichever is shorter; * 6\. Radiotherapy not involving the thoracic cavity within 2 weeks prior to the first administration of NEUK203-13 Injection, or radiotherapy involving the thoracic cavity within 4 weeks prior to the first administration of the study drug, whichever is longer; * 7\. Concurrent enrollment in another clinical study, unless it is an observational (non-interventional) clinical study; * 8\. Prior vaccination with an antineoplastic vaccine, or receipt of a live vaccine within 4 weeks prior to the first administration of NEUK203-13 Injection; * 9\. Major surgery or severe trauma within 4 weeks prior to the first administration of NEUK203-13 Injection; * 10\. Failure of toxicities from prior antineoplastic therapy to resolve to ≤ Grade 1 according to the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) (except alopecia) or to the level specified in the inclusion/exclusion criteria, whichever is more stringent; * 11\. Active autoimmune disease or a history of autoimmune disease (e.g., interstitial pneumonia, colitis, hepatitis, hypophysitis, vasculitis, nephritis, hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism, including but not limited to these diseases or syndromes); exceptions include patients with vitiligo, patients with a history of childhood asthma/allergies that have resolved completely and require no intervention in adulthood, patients with autoimmune-mediated hypothyroidism receiving a stable dose of thyroid replacement hormone, and patients with type 1 diabetes receiving a stable dose of insulin; * 12\. A history of immunodeficiency, including positive HIV test results, or other acquired or congenital immunodeficiency diseases, or a history of organ transplantation or allogeneic bone marrow transplantation; * 13\. Severe infection (CTCAE \> Grade 2) within 4 weeks prior to the first administration of NEUK203-13 Injection, such as severe pneumonia requiring hospitalization, bacteremia, infectious complications, etc.; baseline chest imaging indicating active pulmonary inflammation; or presence of signs and symptoms of infection requiring oral or intravenous antibiotic therapy within 2 weeks prior to the first administration of the study drug (except for prophylactic antibiotic use); * 14\. Tuberculosis infection identified by medical history or CT examination; Active hepatitis B (HBV DNA ≥ 500 IU/mL), hepatitis C (positive anti-HCV antibodies and HCV-RNA above the lower limit of detection of the assay), or positive syphilis test results (including positive RPR or TPPA); * 15\. Prior diagnosis of any other malignant tumor, except for adequately treated basal cell or squamous cell skin cancer, in situ cervical or breast cancer, or adequately treated localized prostate cancer; * 16\. Pregnant or lactating women; * 17\. Uncontrolled concurrent diseases, including but not limited to: documented cerebrovascular events (stroke or transient ischemic attack) within 6 months prior to the first administration of the study drug, symptomatic congestive heart failure, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) \< 50%, uncontrolled hypertension, unstable angina pectoris, uncontrolled arrhythmias, severe chronic gastrointestinal disease with diarrhea, or severe dyspnea requiring oxygen therapy; * 18\. A definite history of neurological or psychiatric disorders that, in the investigator's judgment, may affect the patient's cognitive function or compliance, including unstable epilepsy, dementia, schizophrenia, etc.; or psychiatric illnesses/social conditions that may affect study compliance, significantly increase the risk of adverse events, or impair the patient's ability to provide written informed consent; * 19\. Other factors judged by the investigator that may force the patient to terminate the study prematurely, such as severely abnormal laboratory test results, and/or family or social factors that may affect patient safety or the collection of trial 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
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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Cancer Hospital of CICAMS
RECRUITINGBeijing, China
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