Proof of Principle Trial to Determine if Nutritional Supplement Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) Can Modulate the Lipogenic Pathway in Breast Cancer Tissue

An in Vivo Proof of Principle Trial to Determine Whether the Nutritional Supplement Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA, Clarinol™) Can Modulate the Lipogenic Pathway in Breast Cancer Tissue

Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) is obtained in the human diet by consumption of foods containing ruminant fat. Milk and dairy products have shown the highest amounts of CLA. Clarinol (CLA), is considered a natural supplement and is not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). CLA is known to inhibit proliferation of human breast cancer cells and tumors in rodent breast cancer models and reduced Spot 14 (THRSP, S14) and Fatty Acid Synthase (FASN) gene expression in breast cancer cells and tht the two major CLA isomers used in nutritional supplements (C9, t11 and t10, c12) were equipotent in reducing breast cancer cell growth. This study looks at the hypothesis that S14 expression is decreased by CLA and will characterize the major pharmacodynamic (PD) effects of CLA in newly diagnosed Breast cancer patients on Tumor tissue lipogenic pathway. FASN, S14 and Lipoprotein Lipase (LPL), Ki67 and apoptotic index expression will be assessed by quantitative immunohistochemistry (IHC) in initial breast cancer biopsies and compared to that in resected breast tumor tissue after the study subject has been taking CLA for ten to twenty-eight days. Tissue from adjacent breast adipocytes will also be analyzed to determine whether adipose tissue effects can serve as a surrogate marker for those in tumor tissue. A sample of the original biopsy will be compared to the tumor resection sample to determine the levels of CLA in the breast cancer cells.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Breast Cancer
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA)

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 24
• Phase: Early Phase 1

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • New Hampshire
    • Lebanon, New Hampshire, United States, 03756
      • Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, Norris Cotton Cancer Center

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: Female

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• All study patients must have histologically confirmed invasive adenocarcinoma of the breast. Their breast cancer must be resectable clinical stage I or II breast cancer as defined by the current AJCC TNM Staging System (Greene FL, Page DL, Fleming ID, et al.: editors. AJCC cancer staging manual, 6th edition. New York: Springer; 2002).
• All patients must be able to and give informed consent indicating they are aware of the investigational nature of this treatment, prior to entry into the study.
• All subjects must be Age >18 years.
• All subject must have adequate hepatic and renal function documented prior to study entry to include: hepatic transaminases (AST or ALT) ≤ 1.5 times the upper limits of normal, total bilirubin ≤ 1.5 times the upper limits of normal, serum creatinine ≤ 1.5 times the upper limit of normal or eCRCl ≥ 60 mL/min.

Exclusion criteria:

• Patients who have received prior or be receiving radiation therapy for their breast cancer will be excluded.
• Patients who have received prior chemotherapy or receiving chemotherapy or hormonal therapy for their breast cancer will not be included.
• Women must be surgically sterilized or post-menopausal or women of childbearing potential must be using an adequate method of contraception. Women of childbearing potential must be using at least one of the following: oral, implanted, injectable contraceptive hormones, or mechanical products such as an intrauterine device or barrier methods (diaphragm, condoms, spermicides) to prevent pregnancy or practicing abstinence or have a partner that is sterile (e.g., vasectomy). Women of childbearing potential must have a negative serum or urine pregnancy test within 72 hours prior to start of study therapy. Women who are pregnant or breast-feeding and women of childbearing potential not using an adequate method of birth control will be excluded.
• Patients with gastrointestinal abnormalities including: inability to take oral medication, requirement for intravenous alimentation, or prior surgical procedures affecting nutrient /drug absorption will be excluded.
• A serious uncontrolled medical disorder or active infection which would impair their ability to receive study treatment will be excluded. Significant cardiac disease, including uncontrolled high blood pressure, unstable angina, and congestive heart failure, myocardial infarction within the previous 3 months or serious cardiac arrhythmias will be excluded. Dementia or significantly altered mental status that would prohibit the understanding or rendering of informed consent and compliance with the requirements of this protocol will be excluded.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Basic Science
• Allocation: N/A
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Intervention / Treatment

Experimental: CLA; open-label, single-institution proof of principle study of oral CLA in patients with newly diagnosed adenocarcinoma of the breast.

Drug: Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA); Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA, Clarinol™) oral soft gel capsules will be administered in an open-labeled, manner to all subjects enrolled in the study. Subjects will be treated with 7.5 grams of oral CLA daily, taken in divided dose, twice daily between 8 am and 12 noon and between 8 pm and 12 midnight. CLA will be taken for a minimum of ten days prior to surgical resection of their breast malignancy. In the event that the subject's surgical resection date is delayed, subjects may take CLA for up to 28 days. The last dose of CLA prior to the surgical resection will be taken at 12 midnight or as close as possible to that time and the patient will record the time of the last dosing.; Other Names: Clarinol

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Number of Participants With Spot 14 Expression Pre and Post CLA as Assessed by Quantitative Immunohistochemistry and Staining Intensities Scored at 0, 1, or 2	To determine whether ≥ 10 days of CLA consumption suppresses Spot 14 expression in breast cancer tissue in vivo. The staining intensities scoring system used is: no immuostaining (0), weak staining (1), and strong staining (2). The scoring system used objectively and quantitatively assesses the expression of Spot 14, fatty acid synthase, and lipoprotein lipase using the image processing and analysis software Image-Pro Plus™ (MediaCybernetics).	Up to 28 days

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Number of Participants With FASN Expression Pre and Post CLA as Assessed by Quantitative Immunohistochemistry and Staining Intensities Scored at 0, 1, or 2	To determine whether ≥ 10 days of CLA consumption suppresses FASN expression in breast cancer tissue in vivo. The staining intensities scoring system used is: no immuostaining (0), weak staining (1), and strong staining (2). The scoring system used objectively and quantitatively assesses the expression of Spot 14, fatty acid synthase, and lipoprotein lipase using the image processing and analysis software Image-Pro Plus™ (MediaCybernetics).	Pre-CLA treatment and up to 2 years Post-CLA treatment
Number of Participants With LPL Expression Pre and Post CLA as Assessed by Quantitative Immunohistochemistry and Staining Intensities Scored at 0, 1, or 2	To determine whether ≥ 10 days of CLA consumption suppresses LPL expression in brest cancer tissue in vivo. The staining intensities scoring system used is: no immuostaining (0), weak staining (1), and strong staining (2). The scoring system used objectively and quantitatively assesses the expression of Spot 14, fatty acid synthase, and lipoprotein lipase using the image processing and analysis software Image-Pro Plus™ (MediaCybernetics).	Pre-CLA treatment and up to 2 years Post-CLA treatment
Number of Participants With Ki67 Expression Pre and Post CLA as Assessed by Quantitative Immunohistochemistry	To determine whether ≥ 10 days of CLA consumption impacts the status of tumor proliferation by calculating the percentage of cells expressing Ki67.	Pre-CLA treatment and up to 2 years Post-CLA treatment
Assess Tumor Cell Apoptosis by Immunostaining for Cleaved Caspase 3 Pre and Post CLA	To determine whether ≥ 10 days of CLA consumption impacts the status of tumor cell apoptosis by measuring the presence of immunostaining for cleaved caspase 3.	Pre-CLA treatment and up to 2 years Post-CLA treatment
Number of Participants With Measurable Concentration of the Circulating Plasma Free CLA Isomers c9,t11 and t10,c12 Matched to Spot 14 Expression.		Pre-CLA treatment and up to 2 years Post-CLA treatment
Number of Participants With Measurable Concentration of the Circulating Plasma Free CLA Isomers c9t11 and t10c12 Matched to Ki-67 Expression		Pre-CLA treatment and up to 2 years Post-CLA treatment
Safety of Short Term Treatment With 7.5 Gram CLA Per Day.		2 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
• Collaborators: Dartmouth College
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Burton L Eisenberg, MD, Norris Cotton Cancer Center

Publications and helpful links

Helpful Links

• Norris Cotton Cancer Center

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): June 1, 2009
• Primary Completion (Actual): March 1, 2013
• Study Completion (Actual): March 1, 2013

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 20, 2009
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 26, 2009
• First Posted (Estimate): May 27, 2009

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): April 1, 2019
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: January 7, 2019
• Last Verified: June 1, 2018

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Conjugated Linoleic Acid; Proof of Principle; Lipogenic Pathway; Clarinol
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Skin Diseases; Neoplasms; Neoplasms by Site; Breast Diseases; Breast Neoplasms
• Other Study ID Numbers: D0906

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