Efficacy Of Doxycycline On Metakaryote Cell Death In Patients With Resectable Pancreatic Cancer

Study Overview

Efficacy of Doxycycline on Metakaryote Cell Death in Patients With Resectable Pancreatic Cancer

This is a window-of-opportunity study that examines the efficacy of doxycycline, and FDA-approved oral antibiotic, on metakaryotic (cancer stem cells) in resectable pancreatic cancer following eight weeks of treatment.

BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE: Pancreatic tumors have two distinct cell populations -- eukaryotic tumor cells and metakaryotic cells. The first cell type divides quickly but must stop at a certain point. Metakaryotic cells, also called cancer stem cells, divide less frequently but have an unlimited number of cell divisions. Chemotherapy works well on eukaryotic cells. Metakaryotic cells are resistant to chemotherapy and radiation, so they are more difficult to eliminate. Massachusetts Institute of Technology basic science researchers working with the Medical College of Wisconsin pancreatic cancer group demonstrated in the laboratory that doxycycline can kill both eukaryotic and metakaryotic cells. This study's goal is to discover if the metakaryocidal drug doxycycline kills any significant fraction of the metakaryotic cells found in treated pancreatic tumors. Targeting metakaryotic cells may decrease cancer relapse and metastases. The development of antimetakaryotics is vital for pancreatic cancer patients, who are at risk for disease recurrence and cancer-related death. STUDY OBJECTIVES: Primary Objectives: To assess the efficacy of doxycycline on inducing metakaryotic cell death in primary pancreatic tumors from patients with resectable pancreatic cancer. Secondary Objectives: * To determine the plasma drug concentrations of the study drug at baseline and at days 1, 3, 5, 8, 15, 22, 29, and at restaging and at the time surgery. * To assess the histopathologic treatment response of the primary tumors which have undergone neoadjuvant gemcitabine based chemoradiation and concurrent doxycycline therapy. * To enumerate the number of observed dead/dying metakaryotes per 1 gram of resected pancreatic tissue. STUDY PROCEDURES: Patients will take 100 mg doxycycline twice daily for a period of eight weeks (56 days). Following standard-of-care (not study trial-related) chemotherapy, patients will receive radiation therapy. Patients will receive doxycycline beginning on the first day of radiation therapy. Following this, patients will undergo surgery four to five weeks after completion of chemoradiation. Doxycycline will be discontinued five to seven days prior to surgery. This study involves pharmacokinetic studies, which means that patients will have blood draws several times so that serum levels may be evaluated.

Resectable Pancreatic Cancer

DRUG: Doxycycline

PRO28944

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 Registration Dates	Results Reporting Dates	Study Record Updates
First Submitted 2016-05-05	Results First Submitted 2023-05-22	Last Update Submitted that met QC Criteria 2023-06-14
First Submitted that Met QC Criteria 2016-05-13	Results First Submitted that Met QC Criteria 2023-06-14	Last Update Posted (ACTUAL) 2023-07-03
First Posted (ACTUAL) 2016-05-18	Results First Posted 2023-07-03	Last Verified 2023-06

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

Design Details

Primary Purpose:
Treatment

Allocation:
Na

Interventional Model:
Single Group

Masking:
None

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group/Arm	Intervention/Treatment
EXPERIMENTAL: Doxycycline Administered to Patients Patients will receive oral doxycycline and trough serum concentrations for pharmacokinetic studies will be obtained.	DRUG: Doxycycline Treatment with doxycycline hyclate will be administered as an oral agent on an outpatient basis. Patients will receive doxycycline 100 mg twice daily for a period of 8 weeks (56 days). Upon registration (baseline) and at the first, third, and fifth days o

Participant Group/Arm

Intervention/Treatment

EXPERIMENTAL: Doxycycline Administered to Patients

Patients will receive oral doxycycline and trough serum concentrations for pharmacokinetic studies will be obtained.

DRUG: Doxycycline

Treatment with doxycycline hyclate will be administered as an oral agent on an outpatient basis. Patients will receive doxycycline 100 mg twice daily for a period of 8 weeks (56 days). Upon registration (baseline) and at the first, third, and fifth days o

Primary Outcome Measures	Measure Description	Time Frame
Determine the Efficacy of Doxycycline in Inducing Metakaryotic Cell Death in Primary Pancreatic Tumors as Measured by Pathologic Response	The histopathologic response of the primary tumor will be assessed using the College of American Pathology criteria for residual tumor response following neoadjuvant therapy for the exocrine pancreas. Researchers will enumerate the number of observed dead/dying metakaryotes per 1 gram of resected pancreatic tissue.	Month 3 visit

Secondary Outcome Measures	Measure Description	Time Frame

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

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.

Ages Eligible for Study:
ALL

Sexes Eligible for Study:
18 Years

Accepts Healthy Volunteers:

Histologically or cytologically confirmed pancreatic adenocarcinoma which may be acquired using a fine needle aspiration.
Not received any prior therapy.
Established resectable pancreatic cancer based on radiographic imaging.
Patients who will receive neoadjuvant therapy (chemoradiation) are eligible.
Age ≥18 years.
Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status ≤2 (Karnofsky ≥60%).
Have no active or chronic infection with HIV, Hepatitis B or Hepatitis C
Life expectancy of greater than six months.
Ability to understand and the willingness to sign a written informed consent document.
Normal organ and marrow function as defined below:

Patients with more clinically advanced pancreatic cancer (borderline resectable, locally advanced, or metastatic).
Uncontrolled intercurrent illness including, but not limited to, ongoing or active infection, symptomatic congestive heart failure, unstable angina pectoris, cardiac arrhythmia, or psychiatric illness/social situations that would limit compliance with study requirements.
Pregnant women are excluded from this study because the effects of metakaryocidal agents have the potential for teratogenic or abortifacient effects.
Previous history of other malignancy (other than cured basal or squamous cell carcinoma of the skin or cured in-situ carcinoma of the cervix) within two years of study enrollment.
Active or chronic HIV, hepatitis B or hepatitis C.
Patients who are receiving other investigational drugs or enrolled in other clinical trials.
Inability to undergo scheduled blood acquisition per protocol.
Drug specific exclusion including history of allergic reactions to tetracyclines.
Prior treatment with doxycycline within a seven day washout period prior to initiating treatment with alternate antimetakaryocidal medication.

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Investigators

PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR: Susan Tsai, MD, MHS, Medical College of Wisconsin

Publications

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

General Publications

No publications available

Learn

Resources

PatientS

Caregivers

Clinical Trial Record