Immunotherapy plus chemotherapy shows promise against tough nasopharyngeal cancer
NCT ID NCT05201859
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This phase 2 trial tests whether adding the immunotherapy drug sintilimab to the chemotherapy drug capecitabine can better prevent nasopharyngeal cancer from returning after initial treatment. About 150 patients whose cancer did not fully respond to induction chemotherapy will receive either the combination or capecitabine alone. The study tracks how long patients stay cancer-free and monitors side effects.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- sintilimab (an immunotherapy drug) and capecitabine (a chemotherapy drug)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this combination could improve the chance of keeping nasopharyngeal cancer from coming back after standard treatment.
- What could go wrong
- This is a mid-stage trial with only 150 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. Immunotherapy can cause immune-related side effects, and the added benefit over capecitabine alone is not yet proven.
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 150 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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May 2022
- Expected to finish
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Mar 2029
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. Histologically confirmed non-keratinizing nasopharyngeal carcinoma, type of WHO II or III. 2. Tumor staged as II-IVa (AJCC 8th,excluding T2N0 disease). 3. Age ≥ 18 years and ≤ 70 years, both genders. 4. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status (PS) 0 or 1. 5. Patients with plasma EBV DNA\> 0 copy/mL or PD/SD according to RECIST1.1 after two cycles of induction chemotherapy. 6. Completed protocol-specified curative chemoradiotherapy, including two cycles of induction chemotherapy, intensity-modulated radiotherapy, and concurrent cisplatin chemotherapy( at least 2 cycles of concurrent cisplatin chemotherapy). 7. Completion of the last radiation dose within 1 to 7 days before randomization 8. No progression after prior cCRT 9. Adequate marrow function: neutrocyte count≥1.5×10e9/L, hemoglobin ≥90g/L and platelet count ≥100×10e9/L. 10. Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT)/Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST) ≤2.5×upper limit of normal (ULN), and bilirubin ≤ 1.5×ULN. 11. Adequate renal function: creatinine clearance rate ≥ 60 ml/min (Cockcroft-Gault formula). 12. Patients must be informed of the investigational nature of this study and give written informed consent. 13. Women of childbearing potential (WOCBP) who are sexually active must be willing to adhere to effective contraception during treatment and for 1 year after the last dose of study drug. Men who are sexually active with WOCBP must be willing to adhere to effective contraception during treatment and for 1 year after the last dose of the study drug. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Histologically confirmed keratinizing squamous cell carcinoma (WHO I). 2. Prior malignancy within 5 years, except in situ cancer, adequately treated non-melanoma skin cancer, and papillary thyroid carcinoma. 3. Has received a live vaccine within 30 days before informed consent or will receive a live vaccine in the near future. 4. Is pregnant or breastfeeding. 5. Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) positive and hepatitis B virus DNA \>1×10e3 copies/ml or 200IU/ml 6. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibody positive 7. Has active autoimmune disease, except type I diabetes, hypothyroidism treated with replacement therapy, and skin disease that doesn't require systemic treatment (e.g., vitiligo, psoriasis, or alopecia). 8. Has any condition that required systemic corticosteroid (equivalent to prednisone \>10mg/d) or other immunosuppressive therapy within 28 days before informed consent. Patients received systemic corticosteroid equivalent to prednisone ≤10mg/d, inhale or topical corticosteroid will be allowed. 9. Has a known history of active TB (bacillus tuberculosis) within 1 year; patients with adequately treated active TB over 1 year ago will be allowed. 10. Has known allergy to large molecule protein products or any compound of sintilimab. 11. Has a known history of interstitial lung disease. 12. Any other condition, including symptomatic heart failure, unstable angina, myocardial infarction, active infection requiring systemic therapy, mental illness or domestic/social factors, deemed by the investigator to be likely to interfere with a patient's ability to sign informed consent, cooperate and participate in the study, or interferes with the interpretation of the results.
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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.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Department of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center
Guangzhou, Guangdong, 510060, China
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- Can a targeted therapy replace harsh chemo in nasopharyngeal cancer?
- Could adding extra chemo before standard therapy beat nasopharyngeal cancer?
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