4 Leading Cancer Clinical Trials

Leading Cancer Clinical Trials

Cancer is one of the most dangerous and prevalent disorders today. Scientists and medical professionals have been trying to find out more effective and efficient ways not just to diagnose and treat cancer, but also to prevent it.

Tens of thousands of scientists across the world are currently engaged in cancer research. If you, too, want to make a contribution towards this and help find better diagnostic and treatment methods for cancer, you can follow the links provided below.

Where to find Cancer Clinical Trials in the US?

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) is the leading federal health organization engaged in everything related to cancer in the US. Here are some of NCI’s top current cancer clinical trials:

1 – NCI-COG Pediatric MATCH

The NCI-COG Pediatric MATCH is a nationwide clinical trial for cancer treatment in children and adolescents aged 1 to 21 years. This cancer clinical trial aims to test the use of precision medicine for pediatric cancer care.

This trial accommodates patients with treatment-resistant solid tumors, offering them experimental treatments based on genetic changes in the tumors rather than on the type or location of the cancer. Enrollment is now closed, except for one arm that remains open. (1,2)

In essence, this cancer clinical trial aims to find the effectiveness of treating cancer tumors in children and adolescents by focusing on specific genetic changes that can be treated using medicinal drugs; 13 treatment arms enrolled a total of 1,371 participants. (3)

For additional information on eligibility criteria and the application process, feel free to consult your child’s doctors and healthcare team and then contact Pediatric MATCH for more details at https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/

2 – NCI-MATCH Trial (Molecular Analysis for Therapy Choice)

The NCI-MATCH trial is a precision medicine cancer clinical trial. This trial aims to determine the effectiveness of treating cancer by matching treatments to the cancer’s specific genetic mutations identified through genomic sequencing.

Suppose the participant meets the eligibility criteria and suffers from cancer that displays a genetic mutation at the cellular level. In that case, the participant will be treated using specified genome-enhancing drugs.

This trial comprises 38 treatment arms, each targeting a specific genetic mutation identified through genomic sequencing. Enrollment concluded on December 23, 2022, with 1,201 participants. This trial uses FDA-approved drugs or investigational drugs that have shown potential to combat cancer.

To learn further details of this cancer clinical trial, feel free to consult your doctor or healthcare team first before learning more through the NCI official website at https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/nci-supported/nci-match.

3 – ALCHEMIST Lung Cancer Trial

The Adjuvant Lung Cancer Enrichment Marker Identification and Sequencing Trials, or ALCHEMIST, in short, is a series of randomized cancer clinical trials for patients suffering from early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and whose tumors have been removed successfully through surgical treatment.

This trial aims to determine whether adding targeted therapy according to the patient’s tumor genetics will be effective in preventing cancer from recurring and, in a sense, help prolong the patient’s lifespan. The ALCHEMIST Screening Trial will test tumor samples from approximately 8,000 patients with resected early-stage NSCLC for EGFR or ALK changes.

Some of the top ALCHEMIST Cancer Trials include:

• The ALCHEIST Screening Trial aims to determine eligibility for further trials by analyzing patients’ tumor samples for specific genetic alterations. If a patient tests positive for EGFR mutations and ALK rearrangements, then they will be referred to a trial that is testing the effectiveness of erlotinib and crizotinib for correcting the condition. Those without EGFR alterations and ALK rearrangements will be referred to an immunotherapy trial using the nivolumab drug.
• The ALCHEIST EGFR Treatment Trial tests the effectiveness of erlotinib in patients with early-stage NSCLC and EGFR mutations, aiming to improve overall survival compared to placebo. This cancer clinical trial aims to determine whether erlotinib improves overall survival as compared to a placebo in patients suffering from early-stage EGFR-positive NSCLC and who have completed successful surgical tumor removal.
• The ALCHEMIST ALK Treatment Trial aims to test the effectiveness of crizotinib in patients with early-stage NSCLC, which shows ALK rearrangements. This cancer clinical trial is set to determine the effectiveness of using crizotinib in patients suffering from early-stage ALK-positive NSCLC after successful surgical removal of the tumor.

4 – Lung-MAP – Master Protocol for Lung Cancer

The Lung-MAP trial, or the Lung Cancer Master Protocol, is a precision medicine clinical trial for lung cancer.

This trial is seeking participants with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that is progressing despite previous treatments.

This is an umbrella trial and includes testing several medicinal drugs across multiple subgroups; it is currently open at more than 800 centers. (4)

The Lung‑MAP cancer clinical trial aims to test different treatment methods focusing on genetic changes in NSCLC and is open at more than 800 sites across the US. (4)

If you are interested in participating in this trial, you need to talk to your doctor or healthcare team before finding out more about it at their official website https://www.cancer.gov/types/lung/research/lung-map.

Conclusion

These are the top current cancer clinical trials being held across the US.

There are numerous other opportunities for cancer patients to participate in similar trials and contribute towards improving and enhancing cancer diagnostic and treatment methods.

See Also

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