The CHARM Trial: Chemotherapy for Ablation and Resolution of Mucinous Pancreatic Cysts

February 20, 2018 updated by: Matthew T. Moyer, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of a chemotherapeutic cocktail with or without prior ethanol lavage for ablation of premalignant pancreatic cysts using endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine needle injection (EUS-FNI) for agent delivery.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

While about half of pancreatic cystic lesions have little to no malignant potential, mucinous cystic neoplasms (MCNs) and intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMNs) carry a high potential for progression into pancreatic cancer. Therefore, either close radiographic surveillance or surgical resection is generally recommended for these cysts. However, pancreatic surgery is associated with a significant risk of morbidity and mortality and not all patients are good surgical candidates. As an alternative, endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine needle injection(EUS-FNI) has been shown to be moderately effective in ablating cystic lesions.

The goal of this investigation is to improve the efficacy and safety of this procedure when compared with previous versions of the technique. This study is designed to evaluate the efficacy of a chemotherapeutic cocktail with or without prior ethanol lavage for ablation of pancreatic cystic neoplasms using EUS-FNI for agent delivery. This paired, prospective, double-blind, randomized study will include 78 patients referred to the Penn State Hershey Medical Center. Mucinous or indeterminate pancreatic cysts of 1-5cm with less than 5 compartments and without clear communication with the main pancreatic duct will be included. Patients will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio into a control arm or study arm. Patients randomized to the control arm will receive ethanol lavage of the cyst followed by injection of two carefully selected chemotherapeutic agents. Study arm patients will receive a normal saline lavage followed by injection of the same chemotherapy admixture. Patients will be monitored for 2 hours post-procedure, and a follow-up CT will be performed at 6, and 12 months, or as determined necessary to evaluate cyst resolution. Patients may elect to undergo evaluation for surgical resection at any time, regardless of response, in which case a dedicated pathologist will evaluate any surgical specimens.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

46

Phase

  • Phase 2

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
    • Pennsylvania
      • Hershey, Pennsylvania, United States, 17033
        • Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical 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

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Patients age 18 and older of any gender, ethnicity and race
  • Voluntary enrollment and ability to give written informed consent
  • Capable of safely undergoing endoscopy with deep sedation or general anesthesia
  • Patients with previously-detected pancreatic cyst(s) 1-5 cm in diameter, including indeterminate cysts

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Pancreatic cyst <1cm or >5cm
  • Pancreatic cyst with clear communication with main pancreatic duct
  • Clearly benign lesions by clinical and radiographic evaluation (pseudocysts and serous cystadenomas)
  • Known or suspected pancreatic cancer or pathologic lymphadenopathy
  • Septated cysts with > 5 compartments
  • Coagulopathy (international normalized ratio > 1.6, platelets < 30,000)
  • Evidence of active pancreatitis or pancreatic infection
  • Patients having undergone endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) within 72 hours
  • Baseline lab values at the time of consent: white blood cells > 14 or < 2, hematocrit < 30, platelets < 30,000, INR > 1.6, abnormal CA19-9, lipase > 3 times the upper limit of normal, creatinine > 2.5, ALT > 210, total bilirubin > 2.5, positive qualitative beta-hCG.
  • Any pre-existing or discovered medical condition that may, at the discretion of the investigator, interfere with the completion of and/or participation in the existing protocol.
  • Pregnant, breastfeeding, or incarcerated individuals

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: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Control Group
Cyst will be lavaged for 3-5 minutes with Ethanol (alcohol 80%). Following lavage with Ethanol (alcohol 80%), The cyst will be infused with an admixture of chemotherapy drugs (Paclitaxel/ Gemcitabine) 3mg/ml paclitaxel and 19mg/ml gemcitabine.
Drug: Ethanol
Cysts will be lavaged for 3-5 minutes with 80% EtOH
Drug: Chemotherapy
Following lavage with either 80% ethanol (control group) or normal saline (study group), cysts will be injected with a cocktail of 3mg/ml paclitaxel and 19mg/ml gemcitabine.
Experimental: Study Group
Cyst will be lavaged for 3-5 minutes with Normal Saline .. Following lavage with Normal Saline, The cyst will be infused with an admixture of chemotherapy drugs (Paclitaxel/ Gemcitabine) 3mg/ml paclitaxel and 19mg/ml gemcitabine.
Drug: Chemotherapy
Following lavage with either 80% ethanol (control group) or normal saline (study group), cysts will be injected with a cocktail of 3mg/ml paclitaxel and 19mg/ml gemcitabine.
Drug: Normal Saline
Cysts will be lavaged for 3-5 minutes with normal saline

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Number of Participants With the Changing in Cyst Volume
Time Frame: 6, and 12 months post procedure
The primary outcome of interest will be change in cyst size, as measured on initial, 6, and 12 month CT/MRI, or as determined necessary to evaluate cyst resolution. Cyst size was calculated by measuring x and y diameters and calculating cyst volume using the formula:4/3xpxr3 where r is the average of the cyst radius as measured on the initial, 6-month, and 12-month magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography. Response was defined according to the same volume percentage reductions as described in previous trials where: complete response is a =>95% reduction in cyst volume, partial response is a 94%-75% reduction, and anon-response is <75% reduction in volume.11 The overall ablation rates in both arms were also compared with historical controls to assess the efficacy of the chemotherapeutic cocktail.
6, and 12 months post procedure

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Milton S. Hershey Medical Center

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

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

November 1, 2011

Primary Completion (Actual)

January 1, 2017

Study Completion (Actual)

January 1, 2017

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

November 8, 2011

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

November 16, 2011

First Posted (Estimate)

November 21, 2011

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

March 20, 2018

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 20, 2018

Last Verified

February 1, 2018

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • IRB 33751

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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