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Active, Not Recruiting

NCT Number: NCT05988918

Multicenter Trial of ESK981 in Patients With Select Solid Tumors

This protocol will enroll patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma and adenosquamous carcinoma (Cohort 1), gastrointestinal/pancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasms with Ki-67 > 20% (Cohort 2) and neuroendocrine prostate carcinoma (Cohort 3)). Each cohort will have its own interim analysis after enrollment of 10 patients.

Subjects will be given a one-month (28 day) supply of study drug (ESK981). Subjects will be instructed to take 4 capsules, with or without food, once per day for 5 consecutive calendar days, then take a drug holiday for 2 consecutive days before repeating the 5 days on-2 days off cycle in sets of 4 weeks or 28 calendar days. Subjects will be asked to keep a pill diary noting the date they take their study drug.

Active, Not Recruiting

This study is active but is not currently recruiting participants.

Key information

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

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

Eligibility Criteria:

  • Patients with histological or cytological confirmation of advanced cancer per specific cohort.
  • Cohort 1: Pancreatic adenocarcinoma or adenosquamous carcinoma who have progressed or deemed intolerant of the standard of care chemotherapy regimens.
  • Cohort 2: Pancreatic or gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumor or carcinoma with Ki-67 > 20% who have progressed or deemed intolerant of at least first-line standard of care systemic therapy.
  • Cohort 3: The subject has histologically proven prostate cancer who have progressed or deemed intolerant of at least first-line standard of care systemic therapy with radiologic evidence of metastases and at least one of the following:
  • Small cell or neuroendocrine morphology on the basis of tissue sample.
  • Prostate adenocarcinoma with IHC staining for neuroendocrine markers (e.g., chromogranin and synaptophysin).
  • Presence of visceral metastases or high-volume disease (> 4 sites of metastases) with a PSA ≤ 5.
  • Serum chromogranin A level ≥ 5x upper limit of normal (ULN) and/or serum neuron specific enolase (NSE) ≥ 2x ULN.
  • Trans-differentiated carcinoma or poorly-differentiated carcinoma
  • Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status 0 - 2
  • Must be ≥ 18 years of age.
  • Evaluable disease determined using guidelines of Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST version 1.1)
  • Ability to understand and willingness to sign IRB-approved informed consent.
  • Willing to provide archived tissue, if available, from a previous diagnostic biopsy.
  • Must be able to tolerate CT and/or MRI with contrast.
  • At least 4 weeks from major surgery with resolution of any sequela to date of enrollment
  • Laboratory values ≤2 weeks during screening must be:
  • Platelet count ≥ 75,000 cells/mm3
  • Absolute neutrophil count ≥ 1500 cells/mm3
  • Hemoglobin ≥ 9 g/dL
  • AST/ALT ≤ 3x upper limit of normal [ULN], or (≤ 5x ULN if liver metastasis present)
  • Bilirubin ≤ 1.5x ULN, or (≤ 2.5 x ULN for subjects with Gilbert's syndrome)
  • Albumin ≥ 3 g/dL
  • Serum creatinine clearance CrCl ≥ 50 mL/min per Cockcroft-Gault Formula
  • INR ≤ 1.5 (or <2.0 if on anticoagulants)
  • Women of child-bearing potential (i.e., women who are pre-menopausal or not surgically sterile) must agree to use acceptable highly effective contraceptive methods (abstinence, intrauterine device [IUD], oral contraceptive(s), intrauterine hormone releasing system (IUS), bilateral tubal occlusion or vasectomized partner) during and for 9 months after last study dose and must have a negative serum or urine pregnancy test during screening.
  • Males with female partners (of childbearing potential) and female partners (of childbearing potential) with male partners must agree to use double barrier contraceptive measure (a combination of male condom with either cap, diaphragm or sponge with spermicide) in addition to oral contraception, or avoidance of intercourse during the study and for 6 months after last study dose is received.
  • Female patients must not be pregnant, have a positive pregnancy test, breastfeeding or planning to become pregnant or breastfeed during treatment and for an additional 9 months after the last dose of study treatment.
  • Male patients must be willing to abstain from donating sperm during treatment and for 6 months after completion of study treatment.
  • No evidence of active infection and no serious infection within the past 30 days. Patient must have completed antibiotic course.
  • No known cerebral metastasis, central nervous system (CNS), or epidural tumor (unless previously treated, asymptomatic and stable for at least 3 months).
  • No active heart disease including but not limited to myocardial infarction that is <3 months prior to registration, symptomatic congestive heart failure (NYHA class 3 or 4), symptomatic coronary artery disease, symptomatic angina pectoris.
  • No history of acute cerebrovascular disease, arterial or venous thromboembolism, percutaneous angioplasty, or coronary artery bypass surgery within 6 months prior to registration
  • No pre-existing coagulopathy, or serious bleeding within 3 months prior to registration.
  • No prior malignancy except for the following: adequately treated basal or squamous cell skin cancer, in situ cancer, localized prostate cancer (Gleason score <8), or adequately treated cancer from which the patient has been disease-free for at least 3 years prior to registration.
  • Must not have uncontrolled diarrhea at the time of enrollment.
  • Patients must not use a chronic daily medication known to be a strong or moderate inhibitor of CYP1A2, CYP2C8 or CYP3A4 at registration (as per Appendix II).
  • Patients must have recovered to baseline or ≤ grade 1 CTCAE v5.0 from toxicities related to any prior treatments, unless adverse event(s) is deemed clinically non-significant and/or stable on supportive therapy.
  • Patients must not have uncontrolled hypertension defined as blood pressure >150/90 despite optimal medical management.
  • No known hypersensitivity to gelatin or lactose monohydrate.

Treatment and study plan

ESK981

Drug

160 mg, PO, Once daily 5 days on and 2 days off

Other names: CEP-11981

Primary outcomes

  1. Progression Free Survival

    Time frame: 4 months after initiating study drug

    Determining efficacy using proportion of patients alive and progression-free at 4 months within each cancer subtype

Secondary outcomes

  1. Overall Response Rate (ORR) within each cancer subtype

    Time frame: up to 18 months from treatment discontinuation

    The ORR will be assessed per RECIST v1.1 criteria (Cohort 1 and 2) or combined RECIST v1.1 + PCWG3 criteria (Cohort 3). Partial or complete response will require confirmation on repeat scan at least 4 weeks from initial radiologic response

  2. Duration of Response (DoR) within each cancer subtype

    Time frame: up to 18 months from treatment discontinuation

    DoR will be measured from the start date of the best response achieved until the date of relapse (i.e., progression). Continuing responders will be right-censored as of the most recent date on which their response status had been assessed. DoR applies to only the patients who achieve either a complete response or a partial response.

  3. Overall Survival (OS) within each cancer subtype

    Time frame: up to 18 months from treatment discontinuation

    The OS will be defined from the date of treatment to either date of death or censoring and estimated using the product-limit method of Kaplan and Meier. Follow-up time will be censored at the date of last disease evaluation.

  4. Safety and tolerability in each cancer subtype

    Time frame: up to 30 days from treatment discontinuation

    Adverse events (AEs) will be defined per the NCI Common Toxicity Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) v5.0.

  5. Median Progression- Free Survival (PFS) within each cancer subtype

    Time frame: up to 18 months from treatment discontinuation

    The PFS will be defined as time from date of initial treatment to date of radiological or clinical progression (leading to withdrawal from the study treatment), or death from any cause on study treatment, whichever comes first. Follow-up time will be censored at the date of last disease evaluation.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center

Other

Registry information

Official study title

A Phase II Multicenter Trial of ESK981 in Patients With Select Solid Tumors

Important dates

Study start
2024
Primary completion
2026
Study completion
2027
First posted
Aug 14, 2023
Registry last updated
May 14, 2026

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

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

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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