Research Study of IV Vitamin C in Combination With Irinotecan vs Irinotecan Alone for Advanced Colorectal CA

May 2, 2025 updated by: Thomas Jefferson University

Phase I/II Study of Intravenous Ascorbic Acid in Combination With Irinotecan Versus Irinotecan Alone for Advanced Colorectal Cancer

This protocol is a phase I/II, study of ascorbic acid (AA) infusions combined with treatment with irinotecan versus treatment with irinotecan alone in patients with recurrent or advanced colorectal cancer who have failed at least one treatment regimen with a 5-FU based therapy. This study will be conducted as an amendment to Investigational New Drug # 77486.

Study Overview

Status

Terminated

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Phase I: To assess whether or not (IV) Ascorbic Acid (AA) with irinotecan therapy is relatively safe and well-tolerated. This aim will be assessed by enrolling a minimum of 6 subjects meeting inclusion criteria, using a modified 3+3 design. Safety will be assessed with the following: toxicity graded by the NCI CTC, urinalysis pre- and post-infusion, basic metabolic panel, and CBC. From our experience and in the experience of our study collaborators, we hypothesize that the combination of IV AA with irinotecan will not be associated with adverse events.

Phase II: To utilize CT or PET/CT (when available) scans to evaluate disease progression to assess overall tumor response rate (complete and partial response) in subjects with advanced or recurrent colorectal cancer treated with the combination of ascorbic acid and irinotecan versus irinotecan alone.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

4

Phase

  • Phase 2
  • 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 Locations

  • United States
    • Pennsylvania
      • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, 19107
        • Thomas Jefferson University

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

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age > 18 years
  • Metastatic colorectal carcinoma (stage IV disease).
  • Patients must have progressed on one or more prior chemotherapy treatment regimens including at least one trial of a 5-FU/oxaliplatin based therapy (FOLFOX) in combination with bevacizumab. Patients must not have had standard chemotherapy within at least 2 weeks of beginning ascorbic acid treatment provided that they have recovered from any toxicities that they experienced.
  • G6PD status > lower limit of normal
  • Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status 0 to 2.
  • Laboratory at baseline evaluation for inclusion in the study: creatinine ≤1.5X upper limit (if the creatinine is elevated, but ≤1.5X the ULN, a 24 hour creatinine clearance will be obtained); transaminase (AST/ALT) ≤2.0X upper limit of normal; bilirubin levels ≥ 2 mg/dL; ANC ≥1,500/mm3; Hemoglobin > 8g/dL; platelet ≥ 100,000/mm3;
  • Women of childbearing potential will confirm a negative pregnancy test and must practice effective contraception during the study.
  • Willing and able to provide informed consent and participate in the study procedures.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients with evidence of a significant current psychiatric disorder that would prevent completion of the study as determined by the PI will not be allowed to participate.
  • Co-morbid medical condition that would affect survival or tolerance as determined by the PI. This includes patients who have not fully recovered from toxicities associated with prior therapy. It also includes subjects who, as determined by the PI, are at risk of experiencing fluid overload (i.e., congestive heart failure).
  • Patients who currently abuse alcohol or drugs.
  • Patients with known glomerular filtration rate of <60ml/min or with nephrotic range proteinuria.
  • Pregnant or lactating women
  • Enrollment in active clinical trial/ experimental therapy or IND study within the prior 30 days.
  • Contraindication for CT or PET/CT as per the PI.
  • Patients who are on strong inducers of CYP3A4 which include but are not limited to: Aminoglutethimide, Bexarotene, Bosentan, Carbamazepine, Dexamethasone, Efavirenz, Fosphenytoin, Griseofulvin, Modafinil, Nafcillin, Nevirapine, Oxcarbazepine, Phenobarbital, Phenytoin, Primidone, Rifabutin, Rifampin, Rifapentine, St. John's wort.

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
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Ascorbic Acid + Irinotecan
Ascorbic Acid (50-100g, 3x weekly) with 350mg/m2 irinotecan once a week every 3 weeks
Drug: Ascorbic Acid
3x a week for 9 weeks
Other Names:
  • Vitamin C
  • Ascorbate
Drug: Irinotecan
350mg/m2 once a week every 3 weeks
Other Names:
  • CPT-11
  • Camptothecin-11
Active Comparator: Standard of Care (irinotecan alone)
350mg/m2 irinotecan once a week every 3 weeks
Drug: Irinotecan
350mg/m2 once a week every 3 weeks
Other Names:
  • CPT-11
  • Camptothecin-11

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Number of Participants That Experience Serious Adverse Events as Defined by the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) v4.0.
Time Frame: 9 weeks +/- 2 weeks
Safety: The primary aim is to assess whether or not (IV) Ascorbic Acid (AA) with irinotecan therapy is relatively safe and well-tolerated according to Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) v4.0.
9 weeks +/- 2 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Number of Participants That Are Alive After 11 Weeks.
Time Frame: 9 weeks +/- 2 weeks
To evaluate progression-free survival related to treatment of patients with advanced or recurrent colorectal cancer
9 weeks +/- 2 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Thomas Jefferson University

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Daniel A Monti, MD, Thomas Jefferson University

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.

Helpful Links

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

December 1, 2011

Primary Completion (Actual)

February 1, 2015

Study Completion (Actual)

February 1, 2015

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

February 23, 2012

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 7, 2012

First Posted (Estimated)

March 12, 2012

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

May 6, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 2, 2025

Last Verified

May 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 11D.459
  • JT 1548 (Other Identifier: JeffTrial Number)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

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.

Subscribe