Efficacy and Safety of Combination Therapy With Bojungikki-tang and Pembrolizumab Monotherapy in Patients With Advanced Non-small Cell Lung Cancer

September 29, 2024 updated by: Mi-kyung Jeong, Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine

A Multicenter, Open Label, Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of Combination Therapy With Bojungikki-tang and Pembrolizumab Monotherapy in Patients With Advanced Non-small Cell Lung Cancer

This is a multicenter, open-label, randomized controlled clinical trial designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of combination therapy with Bojungikki-tang(BJIKT) and pembrolizumab monotherapy in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer whose tumors express PD-L1 positive with no EGFR or ALK genomic tumor aberrations.

Based on prior pre-clinical studies, the combination of Bojungikki-tang and immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) can be expected to improve survival and enhance the therapeutic efficacy of ICIs by modulating the systemic tumor-immune environment.

Therefore, this clinical trial aims to assess the efficacy and safety of the combined therapy with BJIKT and pembrolizumab and establish clinical evidence for an integrative cancer treatment strategy by examining the survival rate and immune status following combined ICI and BJIKT treatment.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

This is a multicenter, open-label, randomized controlled clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of combination therapy with Bojungikki-tang(BJIKT) and pembrolizumab monotherapy in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer whose tumors express PD-L1 positive with no EGFR or ALK genomic tumor aberrations. A total of 70 patients aged 19 or older will be enrolled in the study and progression-free survival (PFS) will be assessed as the primary endpoint.

In a pre-clinical study, the combination of immune checkpoint inhibitors(ICIs) and Bojungikki-tang extended the survival of mice compared to the administration of ICIs or BJIKT alone and reduced tumor volume and weight. In addition, it was confirmed that various immune-related factors in the tumor microenvironment were controlled to improve the immunosuppressed microenvironment and to strengthen the tumor immune response by increasing major immune cytokines in the blood. Furthermore, the combination of ICIs and BJIKT did not cause pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic drug interactions, and significant side effects of Bojungikki-tang were not observed in most clinical reports on long-term administration of Bojungikki-tang. Based on the results, the combination of BJIKT and ICIs is expected to improve survival and enhance the therapeutic efficacy of ICIs by modulating the systemic tumor-immune environment.

In order to evaluate efficacy, variables including PFS, disease control rate (DCR), overall survival (OS), and quality of life will be used. The incidence rate of adverse events (AEs) and AEs with CTCAE grade 3 or higher will be assessed for safety. Most variables will be followed up during and after 45-week treatment, and the safety of interventions will be monitored consistently. Immune profiling and multi-omics analyses, including transcriptomic, proteomic, and metabolomic evaluations of PBMCs, will be conducted for exploratory purposes. In addition, pattern identification, a traditional diagnostic method in East Asian medicine, will be utilized as an exploratory variable. A validated questionnaire assessing Cold-Heat patterns, tongue diagnosis data, and pulse diagnosis data will be used to investigate their correlation with clinical and laboratory data.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

70

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 Contact

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • Korea, Republic of
      • Seoul, Korea, Republic of, 08308
        • Recruiting
        • Korea University Guro Hospital
        • Contact:
      • Seoul, Korea, Republic of, 06351
        • Recruiting
        • Samsung Medical Center
        • Contact:
      • Seoul, Korea, Republic of, 04763
        • Recruiting
        • Hanyang University Seoul Hospital
        • Contact:
      • Seoul, Korea, Republic of, 02447
        • Recruiting
        • Kyung Hee University Hospital
        • Contact:
      • Seoul, Korea, Republic of
        • Recruiting
        • The catholic university of Korea Seoul Saint. Mary's hospital
        • Contact:
    • Gyeonggi-do
      • Anyang-si, Gyeonggi-do, Korea, Republic of, 14068
        • Recruiting
        • Hallym University Medical Center
        • Contact:
    • Gyeongsangnam-do
      • Yangsan, Gyeongsangnam-do, Korea, Republic of, 50612
        • Recruiting
        • Pusan National University Yangsan Hospital
        • Contact:

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

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Patients who voluntarily decided to participate and provided written consent, after listening and understanding the detailed explanation about the clinical trial
  2. Adult male or female aged 19 years or older
  3. Patients with histologically or cytologically confirmed advanced (stage IV) non-small cell lung cancer [according to TNM 8th edition] In case of recurrence, only extra-thoracic metastasis is allowed.
  4. Patients planned for immune checkpoint inhibitor (Pembrolizumab) monotherapy as first-line treatment (Patients with PD-L1 tumor proportion score(TPS) ≥ 50% and no EGFR or ALK genomic tumor aberrations)
  5. Life expectancy ≥ 3 months
  6. ECOG (Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group) Performance Status score of 0~2
  7. Patients with at least 1 measurable lesion as defined in RECIST V1.1

  8. Patients with adequate bone marrow reserve or organ function as follows:

    • Hemoglobin ≥ 9.0 g/dL
    • Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) ≥ 1,500/㎕
    • Platelet count ≥100× 10^3/㎕
    • Serum creatinine ≤ 1.5x ULN or creatinine clearance ≥ 45 ml/min (measured using standard methods at the study site)
    • ALT and AST ≤ 2.5× ULN Patients with liver metastasis: ALT and AST ≤ 5× ULN
    • Total bilirubin ≤ 1.5× ULN Patients with liver metastasis or known Gilbert syndrome(unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia): Total bilirubin ≤ 3× ULN

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Active brain metastases accompanied by clinically significant neurological symptoms or signs
  2. Patients who diagnosed with another primary malignancy that affect non-small cell lung cancer in the last 5 years However, effectively treated non-melanoma skin cancer, carcinoma in situ of cervix, ductal carcinoma in situ of breast, thyroid cancer, or malignancies which were remained in remission during more than 3 years after being treated effectively and considered cured are permitted.
  3. Patients who treated with immune checkpoint inhibitor or anti-CTLA-4 within the last 6 weeks or systemic immunosuppressive medications within the last 2 weeks However, low-dose corticosteroids (prednisone ≤ 10 mg/day or an equivalent dose of corticosteroid within 7 consecutive days) are permitted at the investigator's discretion.
  4. Patients receiving thiazide or loop diuretics
  5. Hypokalemia (less than 3.0 mEq/L)
  6. Active interstitial lung disease requiring oral or intravenous steroid treatment
  7. Patients with autoimmune disease requiring systemic treatment at the time of enrollment
  8. Uncontrolled diabetes mellitus at the time of enrollment (Uncontrolled with insulin and oral medications, HbA1c ≥ 8.0% or fasting blood sugar ≥ 200 mg/dL)
  9. Patients with uncontrolled hypertension at the time of enrollment (systolic pressure > 150 mmHg or diastolic pressure >100 mmHg) despite use of antihypertensive agent
  10. Patients with uncontrolled heart disease (severe heart failure, unstable angina, uncontrolled arrhythmia, or history of life-threatening arrhythmia, etc.)
  11. Patients with hereditary problems such as galactose intolerance, Lapp lactase deficiency or glucose-galactose malabsorption, etc.
  12. Patient with known active or uncontrolled HIV, tuberculosis, hepatitis B, or hepatitis C infection
  13. Pregnant or lactating women
  14. Patients who do not agree to use effective contraception during treatment period and for at least 5 months after the end of IP administration
  15. Patients who received herbal medicine within 4 weeks before the first administration of IP (Bojungikgitang) and been decided that such intake affect the trial or safety of the subject at the investigator's discretion
  16. Patients who received other investigational drugs within 30 days before the first administration of IP (Bojungikgitang)
  17. Severe hypersensitivity to IP and its components (rash, redness, hives, eczema, dermatitis, itching, etc.)
  18. Patients who are not eligible for the trial at the discretion of the investigator including severe infectious diseases or organ failure, etc.

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: Bojungikkitang & Pembrolizumab combination treatment group

Pembrolizumab is administered intravenously every 3 weeks for 45 weeks according to standard procedures until disease progression (PD) or unacceptable toxicity occurs.

Bojungikgitang is used in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment(Pembrolizumab) and is taken 1 bag twice a day before or between meals.
Drug: Bojungikki-tang(BJIKT)

Bojungikgitang, which is a classical formulation widely used in South Korea, China, and Japan for a long time, has been reported to have following anticancer activities.

  1. Protective effect of intestine and hematopoietic organs against radiation damage
  2. Improving localized radiotherapy-induced immune deterioration
  3. Improving cancer-related fatigue and QOL
  4. Reducing radiation or chemotherapy induced side effects
Other Names:
  • Buzhong Yiqi Decoction, Hochu-ekki-to
Drug: Pembrolizumab
It is a humanized antibody used in cancer immunotherapy for various types of cancer, including lung cancer. It targets the programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) receptor of lymphocytes. It was approved for medical use in the U.S. in 2014.
Active Comparator: Pembrolizumab monotherapy group
Pembrolizumab is administered intravenously every 3-week for 45 weeks according to routine practice until disease progression (PD) or unacceptable toxicity occurs.
Drug: Pembrolizumab
It is a humanized antibody used in cancer immunotherapy for various types of cancer, including lung cancer. It targets the programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) receptor of lymphocytes. It was approved for medical use in the U.S. in 2014.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Progression-Free Survival (PFS)
Time Frame: Every 9 weeks until PD(progressive disease), up to end of study (2 years from study initiation)
Every 9 weeks until PD(progressive disease), up to end of study (2 years from study initiation)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Disease Control Rate (DCR)
Time Frame: Every 9 weeks until PD(progressive disease), up to end of study (2 years from study initiation)
Every 9 weeks until PD(progressive disease), up to end of study (2 years from study initiation)
Overall Survival (OS)
Time Frame: Upon confirmation of death, end of the study (2 years from study initiation)
Upon confirmation of death, end of the study (2 years from study initiation)
Object Response Rate (ORR)
Time Frame: Every 9 weeks until PD(progressive disease), up to end of study (2 years from study initiation)
Every 9 weeks until PD(progressive disease), up to end of study (2 years from study initiation)
Time to Progression (TTP)
Time Frame: Every 9 weeks until PD(progressive disease), up to end of study (2 years from study initiation)
Every 9 weeks until PD(progressive disease), up to end of study (2 years from study initiation)
Duration of Response (DoR)
Time Frame: End of study (2 years from study initiation)
End of study (2 years from study initiation)
Time to Treatment Failure (TTF)
Time Frame: Every 9 weeks until PD(progressive disease), up to end of study (2 years from study initiation)
Every 9 weeks until PD(progressive disease), up to end of study (2 years from study initiation)
Number of participants with hyper-progressive disease
Time Frame: Up to end of study (2 years from study initiation)
Up to end of study (2 years from study initiation)
Quality of Life (QoL)
Time Frame: Baseline, Visit 4(week 10), End of Treatment(EOT) visit(week 46)
Baseline, Visit 4(week 10), End of Treatment(EOT) visit(week 46)
Correlation between immuno/omics data and clinical data
Time Frame: Baseline, week 4, week 10, week 19, week 28, week 37, End of Treatment(EOT) visit(week 46)
Baseline, week 4, week 10, week 19, week 28, week 37, End of Treatment(EOT) visit(week 46)
Treatment response according to classification of the cold-heat pattern
Time Frame: End of study (2 years from study initiation)
Cold-heat pattern classification (Cold pattern, Non-cold pattern, Heat pattern, Non-heat) refers to pattern identification of traditional East Asian medicine diagnosed by experts (Doctors of Korean Medicine) based on validated questionnaire, digital tongue diagnosis system data, and digital pulse diagnosis system data
End of study (2 years from study initiation)
Pulse waveform analysis of digital pulse diagnostic system
Time Frame: Baseline, Visit 4(week 10), End of Treatment(EOT) visit(week 46)
The Electric Radial Tonometry device complies with ISO 18615:2020.
Baseline, Visit 4(week 10), End of Treatment(EOT) visit(week 46)
Data of digital tongue diagnosis system
Time Frame: Baseline, Visit 4(week 10), End of Treatment(EOT) visit(week 46)

Categorical scales including tongue colors of tongue body: pale, light pink, red, and continuous variables including the Commission Internationale del'Éclairage (CIE) L*a*b* color values of tongue that represent the brightness, saturation of red and green, and saturation of blue and yellow, respectively.

The equipment used in this study has an algorithm to increase repeatability and diagnostic accuracy by using indirect illumination and feedback gridlines. Also, it was designed to meet the international standards ISO 20498-1, 20498-2, 20498-3, 20498-4, and 20498-5.
Baseline, Visit 4(week 10), End of Treatment(EOT) visit(week 46)

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Sung Yong Lee, Ph.D, Koera University Guro Hospital

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 (Actual)

February 8, 2024

Primary Completion (Estimated)

December 31, 2025

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 31, 2025

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

January 9, 2024

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 31, 2024

First Posted (Actual)

February 8, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

October 1, 2024

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 29, 2024

Last Verified

September 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • KIOM-NSCLC-ICT-01

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

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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