Cord stem cells inhaled for lung scarring: first human test
NCT ID NCT05468502
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This early study tested whether injecting human umbilical cord stem cells into the lungs is safe for people with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a disease that scars the lungs and makes breathing hard. Seventeen patients received different doses through a bronchoscope. The main goal was to find a safe dose and watch for side effects. Researchers also looked for early signs of benefit, like improved breathing or walking distance, but the results are too preliminary to draw conclusions.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells
- What this could lead to
- If this works, it could point toward a treatment that slows or stabilizes IPF, a serious lung disease with few options.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very early Phase 1 trial with only 17 people. It mainly checks safety, not whether the treatment works. Many early-stage cell therapies fail to show benefit in larger studies.
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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17 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Oct 2022
- Finished
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Aug 2025
- Lead sponsor
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A company
The lead sponsor is a pharmaceutical, biotech, or medical-device company.
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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40 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. Age 40-75 years (inclusive), regardless of gender; 2. Diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) according to the 2018 diagnostic guidelines jointly issued by the American Thoracic Society (ATS), European Respiratory Society (ERS), Japanese Respiratory Society (JRS), and Latin American Thoracic Association (ALAT); 3. Subjects with typical HRCT imaging manifestations of IPF (honeycombing, traction bronchiectasis or bronchiolectasis (mainly appearing in ground-glass opacities and fine reticular opacities)) within 12 months prior to screening; 4. Subjects whose disease is assessed by the investigator as stable within 3 months prior to dosing, with diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide (DLCO) at 30%-79% of the predicted value (adjusted for Hb), and FVC/predicted value ≥50%; 5. Blood biochemical tests must meet the following criteria: alanine aminotransferase (ALT) ≤1.5×ULN, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) ≤1.5×ULN, total bilirubin (TBIL) ≤1.5×ULN, direct bilirubin (DBIL) ≤1.5×ULN, serum creatinine (Cr) ≤1.5×ULN; 6. Expected survival ≥12 months; 7. Subjects with good compliance, who are able to understand and cooperate in performing pulmonary function tests, and are willing to receive medication as required by the protocol and undergo follow-up examinations on schedule; 8. Subjects who voluntarily participate in the trial, understand, and sign the informed consent form. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Subjects, who have previously received stem cell therapy, are intolerant to cell therapy, or have taken drugs that may cause or exacerbate pulmonary fibrosis (such as amiodarone, bleomycin, or methotrexate, etc.); 2. Subjects with interstitial lung disease (ILD) other than IPF, including but not limited to: any other type of interstitial pneumonia; lung diseases associated with exposure to fibrogenic agents or other environmental toxins or drugs; other types of occupational lung diseases; granulomatous lung diseases; pulmonary vascular diseases; systemic diseases, including vasculitis, infectious diseases (i.e., tuberculosis), and connective tissue diseases; 3. Subjects currently requiring oxygen therapy (oxygen therapy time ≥15 hours/day); 4. Subjects with a history of mechanical ventilation or concurrent infectious pneumonia or asthma within 1 month prior to screening; 5. Subjects with a history of malignancy within 5 years prior to screening; 6. Subjects who have been hospitalized three or more times due to acute exacerbation of IPF or other respiratory diseases within 1 year prior to screening; 7. Evidence of current digestive, urinary, cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, hematological, neurological, psychiatric, or metabolic diseases that may affect safety, such as poorly controlled type 2 diabetes (fasting blood glucose ≥10.0 mmol/L or HbA1c ≥8.5%) or poorly controlled hypertension (≥160/100 mmHg). 8. History of psychotropic drug abuse or drug addiction; 9. Known history of immune system diseases (e.g., thymic diseases, systemic lupus erythematosus); 10. Subjects with positive serological virology tests (HBsAg, HCV antibody, HIV antibody, Treponema pallidum antibody); however, hepatitis B virus carriers, stable hepatitis B patients after drug treatment (DNA titer ≤500 IU/mL or copy number \<1000 copies/mL), and cured hepatitis C patients (HCV RNA negative) may be enrolled after being deemed eligible by the investigator; 11. Subjects allergic to human albumin, anesthetic drugs, or any of their components; 12. Subjects who have participated in any other clinical trial within 3 months prior to screening; 13. Subjects who cannot tolerate bronchoscopy (including but not limited to the following conditions: active massive hemoptysis; severe hypertension and arrhythmia; myocardial infarction within 4-6 weeks prior to screening or history of unstable angina; severe cardiopulmonary dysfunction; uncorrectable bleeding tendency (platelet count \<60×109/L), such as severe coagulation disorders, uremia, and severe pulmonary hypertension; severe superior vena cava obstruction syndrome; suspected aortic aneurysm; multiple pulmonary bullae; extreme systemic exhaustion); 14. Subjects deemed by the investigator to be at high risk for general/local anesthesia; 15. Pregnant or lactating women, or those with a positive β-human chorionic gonadotropin (β-HCG) test during screening, or those unable or unwilling to adopt effective non-pharmacological contraceptive measures during the study and for 6 months after study completion; 16. Other circumstances deemed by the investigator as unsuitable for participation in this trial.
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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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Shanghai Sixth People's Hospital
Shanghai, Shanghai Municipality, 200233, China
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