Time Restricted Eating During Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer

September 29, 2025 updated by: Kelsey Nicole Dipman Gabel, University of Illinois at Chicago

The Safety and Efficacy of Time Restricted Eating Alone or Combined the Mediterranean Diet During Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the United States however, little is known about how diet can affect cancer treatment. Pre-clinical murine studies report intermittent fasting increases effectiveness of chemotherapy and decreases treatment related adverse events. The proposed research will demonstrate that time restricted eating, a form of intermittent fasting, will improve treatment related outcomes, patient related outcomes, and limit treatment related weight gain and fat mass accretion.Time restricted eating combined with a mediterranean diet will also be feasible and improve cardiometabolic risk more than TRE alone or standard care.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
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

Current standard of care during chemotherapy for breast cancer suggests enough daily calories and protein to maintain body weight and avoid muscle loss. However, this approach may be antiquated given weight gain is common during treatment and emerging pre-clinical and clinical evidence suggest that fasting during chemotherapy may improve clinical and patient-reported outcomes. For example, preliminary human trials examining the fasting mimicking diet (very low-calorie, low-protein diet 1-week per month) or short term fasting (48-120 hours (h)), known as periodic fasting, surrounding chemotherapy may increase effectiveness of treatment and decrease side effects related to chemotherapy. Yet these diets have low adherence, side effects of their own, and may increase patient burden and decrease quality of life. In contrast, time restricted eating (TRE) is a form of intermittent fasting with high adherence that may have similar positive effects on treatment outcomes without the untoward side-effects. Moreover, TRE may have beneficial effects on glucose regulation and body composition (i.e., decreased weight and body fat gain) suggesting the potential importance of this regimen to breast cancer recurrence. TRE is extremely accessible with no calorie counting or financial burden to the patient, individuals just shorten their eating window daily. However TRE also does no address diet quality. The Mediterranean diet has also been shown to improve patient and treatment outcomes in this population. The additive effect might be even more beneficial. Despite the potential benefits, TRE alone or TRE combined with a mediterranean has not been investigated in breast cancer patients during chemotherapy treatment. We aim to test the safety and feasibility of 8-h TRE compared to TRE combined with a mediterranean style diet among female breast cancer patients initiating chemotherapy for stage I-III breast cancer. We further strive to examine the preliminary efficacy of TRE or TRE with the mediterranean diet on treatment related outcomes, treatment related side effects, patient-reported quality of life and fatigue, blood-based metabolic markers and body/weight adiposity compared to the current standard of care.

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.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

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.
40

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

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

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.
  • Name: Kelsey Gabel, PhD
  • Phone Number: 312-413-8911
  • Email: kdipma2@uic.edu

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Illinois
      • Chicago, Illinois, United States, 60612
        • Recruiting
        • University of Illinois Chicago
        • Contact:
          • Kelsey Gabel, PhD

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 to 99 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age 25-99 at time of consent
  • ECOG 0 or 1
  • Breast cancer to meet histologically confirmed Stage I-III.
  • Demonstrates adequate organ function (absolutely neutrophil count ≥ 1,500/μL).
  • All screening labs to be obtained within 30 days prior to registration.
  • Able to provide written informed consent and HIPAA authorization for release of personal health information, via an approved UIC Institutional Review Board (IRB) informed consent form and HIPAA authorization.
  • Women of childbearing potential must not be pregnant or breast-feeding. A negative serum or urine pregnancy test is required per institutional practice guidelines.
  • As determined at the discretion of the enrolling physician or protocol designee, ability of the subject to understand and comply with study procedures for the entire length of the study.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Women with metastatic disease or type 1 or 2 diabetes
  • Women with BMI ≥ 40kg/m2 and < 25kg/m2
  • Women who are pregnant. A negative serum or urine pregnancy test is required per institutional practice guidelines.
  • Night shift workers
  • Women with a history of eating disorders
  • Enrolled participants with a significant weight loss or weight gain within 3 months of the study (weight gain or loss >4kg)
  • Active infection requiring systemic therapy
  • Uncontrolled HIV/AIDS or active viral hepatitis
  • Pregnant or nursing
  • Any prior or concurrent malignancy whose natural history or treatment has the potential to interfere with the safety or efficacy assessment of this investigational regimen, as determined by the treating medical oncologist.
  • Any mental or medical condition that prevents the patient from giving informed consent or participating in the trial.
  • Other major comorbidity, as determined by study PI
  • Illicit drug use or excessive use of alcohol (i.e., > 2 drinks/day)
  • Currently participating in Weight Watcher's or another weight loss program
  • Myocardial infarction
  • Stroke
  • Congestive heart failure
  • Chronic hepatitis
  • Cirrhosis
  • Chronic pancreatitis
  • History of solid organ transplantation

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

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
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.
No Intervention: Standard care
Current standard care is to eat enough calories and protein to maintain weight and lean mass.
Experimental: Time restricted eating
Participants will eat all food within the same self selected 8 hour window daily.
Behavioral: TRE
All food eaten within the same self-selected 8 hour eating window daily, water fasting the remaining hours of the day.
Experimental: Med TRE
Participants will eat a mediterranean style diet within the same self selected 8 hour window daily.
Behavioral: MedTRE
A mediterranean style diet will be eaten within the same self-selected 8 hour eating window daily, water fasting the remaining hours of the day.

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
Feasibility 8-h TRE
Time Frame: 12 weeks
enrollment rate
12 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Relative dose intensity
Time Frame: 12 weeks
dose intensity between groups
12 weeks
Treatment side effects
Time Frame: 12 weeks
Side effects
12 weeks
EROTC quality of life score
Time Frame: 12 weeks
quality of life will be measured by EORTC questionnaire at week 1, 6, and 12
12 weeks
Body weight change
Time Frame: 12 weeks
body weight
12 weeks
Body composition
Time Frame: 12 weeks
body fat percentage
12 weeks
Change in glucose
Time Frame: 12 weeks
glucose
12 weeks
Change in insulin
Time Frame: 12 weeks
insulin
12 weeks

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 Illinois at Chicago

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: Kelsey Gabel, MS, RD, PhD, UIC

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.
August 1, 2022

Primary Completion (Estimated)

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.
March 1, 2026

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.
March 1, 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 26, 2022

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.
February 25, 2022

First Posted (Actual)

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.
February 28, 2022

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimated)

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.
October 1, 2025

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.
September 29, 2025

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.
February 1, 2025

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.
  • 2021-0974

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

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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