Development of New Methodologies and Innovative Tools for the diagnoSi and Therapeutic Treatment of uMAni Epithelial Tumors

The main objective of the SISTEMA project is to develop non-invasive diagnostic tests for the detection and quantification in blood of markers of Mesenchymal Epithelial Transition, a mechanism that characterises certain types of cancer such as breast and lung cancer. Cancer is still one of the leading causes of death in Western countries. In 2014, there were an estimated 1,665,540 new cancer cases and 585,720 deaths in the United States alone. The World Health Organisation (WHO) and Eurostat predict 1,323,600 deaths in Europe, a figure slightly down on previous statistics but still underlining the existence and seriousness of the problem. It is no coincidence that cancer is one of the main areas of investment in the European Horizon 2020 programme. In recent years, the hypothesis that the process of carcinogenesis is driven by the activation of a particular panel of genes/proteins that enable cancer cells to acquire malignant characteristics has become increasingly popular. This process goes by the name Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition (EMT) and characterises all human epithelial tumours. This process allows epithelial tumour cells to acquire mesenchymal characteristics giving them stem, invasive, and chemoresistant properties.

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Key information

Conditions

Cancer Risk Breast Cancer Risk Bronchial Neoplasms Carcinoma, Bronchogenic Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung Lung Cancer (NSCLC) Lung Diseases Lung Neoplasms Neoplasms Neoplasms by Site Respiratory Tract Diseases Respiratory Tract Neoplasms Thoracic Neoplasms

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Observational

Primary location

Asl Lecce

Lecce, LECCE, 73100, Italy

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

Male and female subjects over the age of 18 years with an established clinical picture of breast or lung cancer (including mesothelioma) who have not yet started chemotherapy or biological therapies for the treatment of the neoplastic disease and who have read, understood and signed the study information sheet with attached Informed Consent to Participation, signing the attached consent.

Exclusion criteria

Pregnant female patients of either sex under the age of 18 years, undergoing previous drug therapy with corticosteroids, chemotherapies, immunosuppressants and anticancer drugs, as well as patients with a previous history of other malignancies or in a terminal state (life expectancy less than 4 weeks).

Furthermore, lung cancer patients with conditions that could potentially interfere metabolically with the L-fucose biomarker tested in the specific project arm will be excluded, i.e. lung cancer patients simultaneously suffering from: cirrhosis of the liver, gastric ulcer, diabetes mellitus, periodontitis, as well as subjects under stressful conditions (in which false positivity to the marker due to adrenalin release could occur).

Treatment and study plan

Primary outcomes

Development and realisation of non-invasive systems for the detection and quantification of biomarkers of Mesenchymal Epithelial Transition in blood and salivary samples.

Time frame: 6 months
Validation of innovative biomarkers for the diagnosis and monitoring of therapeutic efficacy in epithelial-mesenchymal transition tumours, primarily breast and lung cancer.Development and implementation of non-invasive systems for the detection and quant

Time frame: 6 months

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

ASL Lecce

Other Gov

Registry information

Acronym: SISTEMA

Important dates

Study start: 2017
Primary completion: 2021
Study completion: 2026
First posted: Apr 22, 2025
Registry last updated: May 13, 2026

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

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This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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