ABY-029 Head & Neck Trial

May 5, 2026 updated by: Joseph A. Paydarfar, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center

Phase 1 Trial of ABY-029 Fluorescence in Patients With Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

The purposes of the research trial are to study the safety of ABY-029 and to understand how much of the drug is needed to reach head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) so it can be visualized best by surgeons. Investigators will do this by comparing two groups of participants that receive different, very small amounts of ABY-029. Investigators will use an imaging system during surgery to record the amount of ABY-029 in the participant's tumor and in the surrounding tissue.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Not yet 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.

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.
24

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.
  • Phase 1

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.

Study Contact Backup

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

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Preoperative diagnosis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma with planned surgical resection of the oral cavity, oropharynx, larynx, or hypopharynx.
  2. Tumor judged to be operable.
  3. Valid informed consent by participant.
  4. Age ≥ 18 years old.
  5. Ability to understand and the willingness to sign a written informed consent document.

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Patients with a medical history of (Grade 2 or higher) hepatic/renal function compromise.
  2. Prisoners
  3. Individuals who are pregnant or breast feeding.
  4. Patients on experimental or approved anti-EGFR targeted therapies.

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: Diagnostic
  • Allocation: Non-Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Single Group 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.
Experimental: ABY-029 6X dose group

ABY-029 will be administered at the 6X dose level prior to surgery to participants with HNSCC.

To understand the safety of ABY-029, investigators will collect blood samples before and after surgery at these time points: before the drug is given to the participant, one or two minutes after participants are given the drug, about 15 minutes after participants are given the drug, and just prior to anesthesia. Investigators will also collect one urine sample and take EKG readings to monitor the participant's heart before surgery. Investigators will repeat blood, urine and EKG tests when participants are in the hospital after surgery.
Drug: ABY-029

ABY-029 will be administered via single intravenous injection to subjects with HNSCC approximately 1-3 hours prior to surgery.

All research procedures will occur during surgery. The research procedures involve image and measurement data collection and biopsy specimen sampling. Research data collection will occur at 3 or 4 time points during surgery using either standard-of-care tools and methods or non-significant risk experimental devices.

No follow-up visit will be required of participants. Participants will be monitored for possible adverse events for approximately 30 days by the operating surgeon involved in the clinical trial procedures and through review of participant medical records.
Experimental: ABY-029 10X dose group

ABY-029 will be administered at the 10X dose level prior to surgery to participants with HNSCC.

To understand the safety of ABY-029, investigators will collect blood samples before and after surgery at these time points: before the drug is given to the participant, one or two minutes after participants are given the drug, about 15 minutes after participants are given the drug, and just prior to anesthesia. Investigators will also collect one urine sample and take EKG readings to monitor the participant's heart before surgery. Investigators will repeat blood, urine and EKG tests when participants are in the hospital after surgery.
Drug: ABY-029

ABY-029 will be administered via single intravenous injection to subjects with HNSCC approximately 1-3 hours prior to surgery.

All research procedures will occur during surgery. The research procedures involve image and measurement data collection and biopsy specimen sampling. Research data collection will occur at 3 or 4 time points during surgery using either standard-of-care tools and methods or non-significant risk experimental devices.

No follow-up visit will be required of participants. Participants will be monitored for possible adverse events for approximately 30 days by the operating surgeon involved in the clinical trial procedures and through review of participant medical records.

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
Adverse events related to ABY-029
Time Frame: one month
To study the safety of ABY-029, adverse events related to 6X and 10X doses of ABY-029 will be tracked following surgery, and the proportion of study-drug related adverse events at 6X and 10X doses will be compared statistically for significant differences.
one month
Diagnostic accuracy of measured ABY-029 fluorescence ex-vivo in surgical specimens
Time Frame: up to three months
To measure the diagnostic performance of ABY-029, the diagnostic accuracy of measured ABY-029 fluorescence ex-vivo in surgical specimens histologically confirmed as tumor from participants receiving the 6X microdose and 10X microdose.
up to three months

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.
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center

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)
Dartmouth College

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: Joseph Paydarfar, MD, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center

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 (Estimated)

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.
June 30, 2026

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.
December 31, 2027

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.
June 30, 2028

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).
December 8, 2025

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.
December 8, 2025

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.
December 12, 2025

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.
May 7, 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.
May 5, 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.
April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

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.
  • 02002698
  • R01CA167413 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

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

Yes

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.

Cookie Settings

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. For more details carefully read our Privacy and Cookies Policy. ...>>>You can change your preferences or withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the cookies from your website or computer as described in the policy. Please accept it and choose your preferences by ticking the corresponding boxes in the "Manage Settings" section below. Please carefully read our Terms of Service before you proceed with using any part of this website.
«Manage Settings