New hope for liver cancer patients with liver damage: drug tested after immunotherapy fails
NCT ID NCT07514455
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This phase 2 trial tests the cancer pill regorafenib in 20 adults with advanced liver cancer and moderate liver dysfunction (Child-Pugh B) whose disease worsened after first-line immunotherapy. Participants take regorafenib daily for 3 weeks on, 1 week off, until the cancer progresses or side effects become too severe. The main goal is to see if the drug delays cancer growth better than no treatment.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- regorafenib (a targeted cancer drug taken as a pill)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could provide a second-line treatment option for liver cancer patients with moderate liver impairment who have no approved therapies after immunotherapy fails.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very small, early-phase trial with only 20 participants. The drug may not improve survival or could cause significant side effects, especially in patients with already compromised liver function.
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 20 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Mar 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Jun 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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19 to 80 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. Voluntarily signed written informed consent form. 2. Age ≥19 years at the time of signing the informed consent form. 3. Histologically or clinically diagnosed hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) according to the Korean Liver Cancer Association-National Cancer Center (KLCA-NCC) guidelines. 4. Disease progression or treatment discontinuation due to toxicity during first-line immune checkpoint inhibitor-based combination therapy (atezolizumab plus bevacizumab, durvalumab plus tremelimumab, or nivolumab plus ipilimumab). 5. At least one measurable target lesion according to RECIST v1.1. 6. Child-Pugh score B (7-8).Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0-2. 7. Adequate hematologic and end-organ function defined by the following laboratory results obtained within 14 days prior to the test (or enrollment): * Hemoglobin ≥ 8.5 g/dL * Absolute Neutrophil Count (ANC) ≥1,200/mm³ * Platelet count ≥60,000/µL * Total bilirubin \< 3.5 mg/dL * Serum albumin ≥2.5 g/dL * Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) ≤7 times upper limit of normal (ULN) * Prothrombin time (INR ≤1.8 times ULN) * Serum creatinine ≤2.0 times ULN or calculated creatinine clearance ≥40 mL/min (using the Cockcroft-Gault equation) 10\) Virologic status of hepatitis confirmed and documented by HBV and HCV screening tests.Patients with HBV or HCV infection must receive antiviral therapy according to institutional guidelines. 11\) Women of childbearing potential must agree to remain abstinent or use effective contraception (with an annual failure rate of \< 1%) from the time of signing informed consent until at least 6 months after the last dose of the study drug.Male participants must agree to remain abstinent or use effective contraception (with an annual failure rate of \< 1%) and refrain from sperm donation from the time of signing informed consent until at least 6 months after the last dose of the study drug. Exclusion Criteria: 1. ALBI (Albumin-Bilirubin) grade 3. 2. Fibrolamellar carcinoma or sarcomatoid carcinoma. 3. Prior treatment with regorafenib. 4. Within 2 weeks since the last administration of an immune checkpoint inhibitor. 5. Receipt of any other systemic or locoregional therapy after the failure of first-line immune checkpoint inhibitor-based therapy. 6. History of allogeneic stem cell transplantation or solid organ transplantation. 7. Active brain metastases or leptomeningeal metastases. 8. History of malignancy other than hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) within 2 years prior to screening, with the exception of malignancies with a negligible risk of metastasis or death (e.g., 5-year survival rate \> 90%). 9. Severe cardiovascular disease within 3 months prior to the start of study therapy (e.g., New York Heart Association \[NYHA\] Class II or higher heart disease, myocardial infarction, or cerebrovascular accident); unstable arrhythmia or unstable angina; history of gastrointestinal perforation, fistula, or intra-abdominal abscess within 6 months prior to the start of study therapy; active gastrointestinal disease with a high risk of bleeding or perforation (e.g., peptic ulcer, inflammatory bowel disease, diverticulitis, cholecystitis, acute pancreatitis); untreated high-risk varices or recent history of variceal bleeding (enrollment is permitted only if at least 28 days have passed since stabilization with standard treatment); prolonged QTc interval (\> 450 ms for males, \> 470 ms for females); systolic blood pressure \> 140 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure \> 90 mmHg despite optimal medical therapy; or other significant medical conditions or abnormal findings that, in the opinion of the investigator, may increase the risk associated with study participation. 10. Female participants who are pregnant or breastfeeding, or male or female participants of reproductive potential who are unwilling to use effective contraception from screening until 6 months after the last dose of the study drug. 11. Participants deemed by the investigator to be unlikely to comply with study procedures, restrictions, and requirements. 12. Patients who have received locoregional therapy (e.g., radiofrequency ablation \[RFA\], microwave ablation \[MWA\], transarterial chemoembolization \[TACE\], transarterial radioembolization \[TARE\], transarterial embolization \[TAE\], radiation therapy, etc.) after the discontinuation of immune checkpoint inhibitor-based combination therapy.
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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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Asan Medical Center
Seoul, 05505, South Korea
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