Myeloid Derived Suppressor Cells Clinical Assay in Finding Kidney Cancer

March 27, 2026 updated by: University of Southern California

MDSC Clinical Assay for Cancer Detection and Monitoring in Renal Cell Carcinoma

This pilot research trial studies the use of the Myeloid Derived Suppressor Cells Clinical Assay in finding and monitoring kidney cancer. Studying samples of blood and urine from patients with kidney cancer in the laboratory may aid doctors in the early detection of cancer, monitor tumor response to therapy, detect the presence of occult spreading of disease, and identify early return of disease.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

PRIMARY OBJECTIVES:

I. To evaluate a novel clinical assay (Myeloid Derived Suppressor Cells [MDSC] Clinical Assay) to detect cancer associated immune cells in the peripheral blood of patients as a means to better detect and monitor malignant renal cell carcinoma in patients.

II. Determine mean MDSC level, intra-subject variability, and inter-subject variability for three groups of subjects with variable renal cell carcinoma disease status at baseline.

III. In patients with known localized renal cell carcinoma who undergo nephrectomy, determine the change in MDSC level from diagnosis to after nephrectomy.

IV. In patients with known metastatic renal cell carcinoma who undergo systemic treatment, determine the change in MDSC level from baseline to after treatment (4 months) and, secondarily, to compare these changes to the changes in tumor burden as evaluated by computed tomography (CT) scan or other imaging modality.

OUTLINE: Patients are assigned to 1 of 3 groups according to disease status.

GROUP I: Patients with no evidence of cancer and no hematuria undergo collection of blood and urine samples at baseline and 2 months for analysis via the Flow Cytometry MDSC Clinical Assay.

GROUP II: Patients diagnosed with localized renal cell carcinoma undergo collection of blood and urine samples at baseline and after nephrectomy for analysis via the Flow Cytometry MDSC Clinical Assay. Patients also undergo CT or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) within 30 days after nephrectomy.

GROUP III: Patients diagnosed with metastatic renal cell carcinoma undergo collection of samples prior to baseline and then after 4 months of systemic treatment for analysis via the Flow Cytometry MDSC Clinical Assay. Patients also undergo CT or MRI after completion of 4 months of systemic treatment.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
37

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • California
      • Los Angeles, California, United States, 90033
        • USC / Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

25 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Patients with renal cell carcinoma and their accompanying partners who are seen at the Urologic Oncology and Medical Oncology Clinics of the Keck Medical Center of University Southern California (USC), Norris Cancer Center, and USC-Los Angeles County Hospital will be recruited for this trial.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Subjects enrolled in this study must meet one of the 3 following criteria:

    • Group 1: Healthy individual with no history of cancer or hematuria
    • Group 2: Subject with a diagnosis of localized renal cell carcinoma (by imaging and eventual pathology) scheduled to undergo nephrectomy
    • Group 3: Subject with a diagnosis of metastatic renal cell cancer(by imaging and eventual pathology) who is scheduled to begin a new systemic therapy
  • Any type of renal cell carcinoma (RCC); any prior therapy
  • Performance status: 0-3
  • Leukocytes >= 3,000/mcL (frequently used - numbers listed are examples, investigator should modify as needed)
  • Absolute neutrophil count >= 1,500/mcL (frequently used - numbers listed are examples, investigator should modify as needed)
  • Ability to understand and the willingness to sign a written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

  • For normal subject arm: no evidence of cancer or hematuria
  • For localized RCC arm: no evidence of metastatic disease, second cancer, prior chemotherapy or radiotherapy within 4 weeks prior to entering the study or those who have not recovered from adverse events due to agents administered more than 4 weeks earlier
  • For metastatic RCC arm: no evidence of second cancer, prior chemotherapy or radiotherapy within 4 weeks prior to entering the study or those who have not recovered from adverse events due to agents administered more than 4 weeks earlier
  • For all subjects: uncontrolled intercurrent illness including, but not limited to previous or current history of second malignancy unrelated to renal cell carcinoma; autoimmune disease or immune deficiency, chronic treatment with immunomodulatory therapies (e.g. glucocorticoids); significant trauma, surgery, or infection in the past two weeks or psychiatric illness/social situations that would limit compliance with study requirements

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Observational Models: Case-Control
  • Time Perspectives: Prospective

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Group I (no cancer or hematuria)
Patients with no evidence of cancer and no hematuria undergo collection of blood and urine samples at baseline and 2 months for analysis via the Flow Cytometry MDSC Clinical Assay
Other: Laboratory Biomarker Analysis
Correlative studies
Other: Cytology Specimen Collection Procedure
Undergo collection of blood and urine samples
Other Names:
  • Cytologic Sampling
Group II (localized RCC)
Patients diagnosed with localized renal cell carcinoma undergo collection of blood and urine samples at baseline and after nephrectomy for analysis via the Flow Cytometry MDSC Clinical Assay. Patients also undergo CT or MRI within 30 days after nephrectomy.
Other: Laboratory Biomarker Analysis
Correlative studies
Procedure: Computed Tomography
Correlative studies
Other Names:
  • CT
  • CAT
  • CAT Scan
  • Computerized Axial Tomography
  • Computerized Tomography
  • tomography
  • CT SCAN
Other: Cytology Specimen Collection Procedure
Undergo collection of blood and urine samples
Other Names:
  • Cytologic Sampling
Procedure: Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Correlative studies
Other Names:
  • MRI
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging Scan
  • Medical Imaging, Magnetic Resonance / Nuclear Magnetic Resonance
  • MRI Scan
  • NMR Imaging
  • NMRI
  • Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Group III (metastatic RCC)
Patients diagnosed with metastatic renal cell carcinoma undergo collection of samples prior to baseline and then after 4 months of systemic treatment for analysis via the Flow Cytometry MDSC Clinical Assay. Patients also undergo CT or MRI after completion of 4 months of systemic treatment.
Other: Laboratory Biomarker Analysis
Correlative studies
Procedure: Computed Tomography
Correlative studies
Other Names:
  • CT
  • CAT
  • CAT Scan
  • Computerized Axial Tomography
  • Computerized Tomography
  • tomography
  • CT SCAN
Other: Cytology Specimen Collection Procedure
Undergo collection of blood and urine samples
Other Names:
  • Cytologic Sampling
Procedure: Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Correlative studies
Other Names:
  • MRI
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging Scan
  • Medical Imaging, Magnetic Resonance / Nuclear Magnetic Resonance
  • MRI Scan
  • NMR Imaging
  • NMRI
  • Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Imaging

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in MDSC level in patients with known metastatic renal cell carcinoma who undergo systemic treatment
Time Frame: Baseline to after 4 months of systemic treatment
The change in MDSC level in patients with known metastatic renal cell carcinoma who undergo systemic treatment will be determined. These changes will be compared to the changes in tumor burden as evaluated by CT scan or other imaging modality.
Baseline to after 4 months of systemic treatment
Change in MDSC level in patients with localized renal cell carcinoma who undergo nephrectomy
Time Frame: Baseline to 30 days after nephrectomy
Baseline to 30 days after nephrectomy
Mean MDSC level
Time Frame: Baseline
The mean MDSC level, intra-subject variability, and inter-subject variability for three groups of subjects with variable renal cell carcinoma disease status will be determined at baseline.
Baseline

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University of Southern California

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Jacek Pinski, MD, University of Southern California

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
September 8, 2015

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
April 13, 2022

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
October 29, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
January 22, 2016

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 22, 2016

First Posted (Estimated)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
January 27, 2016

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
April 2, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
March 27, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
March 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 4K-14-4 (Other Identifier: USC / Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center)
  • P30CA014089 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)
  • NCI-2015-01559 (Registry Identifier: CTRP (Clinical Trial Reporting Program))
  • HS-15-00309

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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Drug Interventions

Conditions

Rare Diseases

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Dietary Supplements

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