Could fasting before immunotherapy boost skin cancer treatment?
NCT ID NCT04387084
First seen Nov 01, 2025 · Last updated Jun 20, 2026 · Updated 35 times
Summary
This early study tests whether short-term fasting (eating less than 200 calories per day for 3 days) before standard immunotherapy is safe and doable for people with advanced or metastatic skin cancer. Ten participants will receive their usual PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor drugs along with fasting cycles. The goal is to see if fasting can reduce side effects or even make the immunotherapy work better.
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This is a summary of
the original study
.
Summaries may miss details or leave out important information. Before applying or accepting participation, make sure you have read and understood the full study. Curemydisease.com takes no responsibility whatsoever for anything missed, misunderstood, or acted upon as a result of our summary — we know it does not capture everything.
This is a summary of the original study . Summaries may miss details or leave out important information. Before applying or accepting participation, make sure you have read and understood the full study. Curemydisease.com takes no responsibility whatsoever for anything missed, misunderstood, or acted upon as a result of our summary — we know it does not capture everything.
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Genom att skicka in godkänner du våra Användarvillkor
Contacts and locations
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Locations
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Los Angeles General Medical Center
Los Angeles, California, 90033, United States
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USC / Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center
Los Angeles, California, 90033, United States
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only — not medical advice or a prediction.
Active substance
short-term fasting (less than 200 calories per day for 3 days per cycle) combined with PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors (e.g., pembrolizumab, nivolumab, atezolizumab)
What this could lead to
If it works, this could point toward a way to reduce immunotherapy side effects and possibly improve treatment effectiveness for advanced skin cancer.
What could go wrong
This is a very early, small pilot study with only 10 participants, so results may not apply broadly. Fasting may cause toxicity or be too difficult for patients to follow.
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.