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CompletedNCT014321456MPUpdated Jul 9, 2019Results posted

A Clinical Trial in Patients With Breast Cancer Susceptibility Gene (BRCA) Defective Tumours

A Phase 2 interventional study of 6-Mercaptopurine and Methotrexate in Breast Cancer and Ovarian Cancer, sponsored by University of Oxford. Completed at 1 site in United Kingdom. Open to female participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2019-07-09.

Sponsored by University of Oxford · Phase 2, Interventional, and Treatment

Phase
Phase 2
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
74
Allocation
Not applicable
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
Female
01

Study summary

This study will evaluate the efficacy and safety of 6-mercaptopurine (6MP) in combination with methotrexate (MTX) in patients with breast or ovarian cancer who are known to have a BRCA (breast cancer gene) mutation.

Read the detailed description

This study will evaluate the efficacy and safety of 6-mercaptopurine (6MP) in combination with methotrexate (MTX) in patients with breast or ovarian cancer who are known to have a BRCA (breast cancer gene) mutation. 6MP is used instead of thioguanine(6TG) as it is converted to the same cytotoxic moiety as 6TG, ie. thioguanine nucleotides, but with reduced toxic effects. Low dose methotrexate is used in combination with 6MP as it promotes the formation of thioguanine nucleotides.

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Conditions studied

  • Breast Cancer
  • Ovarian Cancer

Keywords

  • BRCA defective
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In context

Breast Neoplasms

12,815 studies on the registry are indexed under Breast Neoplasms; 2,920 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 74 is close to the median of 72 across 9,494 interventional studies indexed under Breast Neoplasms.

Browse Breast Neoplasms studies →

Lead sponsor

University of Oxford is the lead sponsor of 812 studies on the registry; 119 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years and older
Sexes eligible
Female
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  1. Patients with proven BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations and after appropriate exposure to standard treatment, as defined by:

    Breast Cancer

    • Patients with initially histologically or cytologically proven locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer who may have received up to 3 previous lines of chemotherapy in the locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer setting.
    • Patients must have previously had a taxane and an anthracycline in either the adjuvant or metastatic setting, provided that these were not contraindicated.
    • Patients with hormone responsive disease should have had at least 1 line of hormone therapy for metastatic disease.
    • Prior treatment with a poly-Adenosine diphosphate (ADP) ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitor is permissible.

    OR Ovarian Cancer

    • Patients with initially histologically or cytologically proven ovarian cancer.
    • Patients must have disease that is platinum resistant or in whom further platinum based therapy is inappropriate.
    • Prior treatment with a PARP inhibitor is permissible.
  2. Patients must have measurable disease on computerized tomography (CT) or Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan as defined by Response Evaluation Criteria In Solid Tumors (RECIST) criteria.
  3. Age ≥18 years.
  4. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance score of 0-2.
  5. Life expectancy >12 weeks.
  6. Written informed consent.
  7. Patient willing and able to comply with all protocol requirements.
  8. No prior anti-cancer treatment in previous 4 weeks, other than palliative radiotherapy (RT).
  9. Haematological and biochemical indices within the ranges shown below.

    • Laboratory Test Value required
    • Haemoglobin (Hb) > 10g/dL
    • White Blood Count (WBC) > 3x109/L
    • Platelet count > 100,000/μL
    • Absolute Neutrophil count > 1.5x109/L;
    • Serum bilirubin ≤ 2 x Upper limit normal (ULN)
    • Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (serum glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase (SGOT)) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) or ALT ≤ 5 x ULN (liver metastasis)
    • or ≤ 3 x ULN (no liver metastasis)
    • Alkaline phosphatase ≤ 5 x ULN
    • Serum creatinine ≤ 1.5 x ULN
  10. Ascites and pleural effusions must be drained prior to therapy.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Patients with any of the following contra-indications to thiopurines (6MP or 6TG) or methotrexate:

    • family history of severe liver failure;
    • alcoholism;
    • porphyria;
    • diffuse infiltrative pulmonary or pericardial disease;
    • known hypersensitivity to either trial agent.
  2. Patients found to have a Low/Low genotype on thiopurine methyltransferase (TPMT) testing will be excluded.
  3. Pregnant or breast-feeding women or women of childbearing potential unless highly effective methods of contraception are used.
  4. Other active malignancy, with the exception of adequately treated in situ carcinoma of the cervix uteri and basal or squamous cell carcinoma of the skin.
  5. Patients known or tested to be serologically positive for Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C or human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).
  6. Patients with active central nervous system (CNS) lesions are excluded (i.e., those with radiographically unstable, symptomatic lesions). However, patients treated with stereotactic therapy or surgery and/or whole brain radiotherapy are eligible if the patient remains without evidence of disease progression in brain ≥ 3 months prior to registration date . They must also be off corticosteroid therapy for ≥ 3 weeks prior to registration date.
  7. Patients who have received anticancer agent(s) or an investigational agent within 28 days prior to study drug administration.
  8. Subjects who have not recovered to within one grade level (not to exceed grade 2) of their baseline following a significant adverse event or toxicity attributed to previous anticancer treatment are excluded.
05

Study design

Phase
Phase 2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
74 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    6MP/MTX

    6-Mercaptopurine 55mg/m2 per day, and methotrexate 15mg/m2 per week

    Drug: 6-Mercaptopurine · Drug: Methotrexate

Interventions

  • 6-Mercaptopurine (6MP) 55mg/m2 body surface area, administered orally (PO) once a day (od) in the morning 1 hour after eating, on a continuous schedule. One cycle is 28 days. Treatment is given continuously until disease progression.

    Also known as: 6MP

  • Methotrexate (MTX) 15 mg/m2 taken orally, once a week, in the morning. One cycle is 28 days. Treatment is given continuously until disease progression.

    Also known as: MTX

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Objective Response Rate to 6-mercaptopurine and Methotrexate (6MP/MTX) in This Patient Population.

    1st stage: If less than 3/30 evaluable patients respond at 8 weeks the trial will be stopped for futility. If 3 or more out of 30 evaluable patients respond then a further 35 patients will be recruited (2nd stage) - this was met. The proportion of patients responding to treatment (complete response, partial response or stable disease) at the second stage will be presented per Response Evaluation Criteria In Solid Tumours (RECIST) criteria version 1.1 measured radiologically with computerised tomography (CT) and/or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); the same method is used at baseline and at follow-up: Complete Response (CR): Disappearance of all target lesions. Partial Response (PR): At least a 30% decrease in the sum of diameters of target lesions. Stable Disease (SD): Neither sufficient shrinkage to qualify for PR nor sufficient increase to qualify for PD. Patients who yield progressive disease (PD) are classed as non-responders.

    Time frame: 8 weeks after start of treatment

Secondary outcomes

  1. Quality of Life - EuroQol Group, Five Dimensions, Three-level (EQ-5D-3L) Standardized Instrument for Measuring Generic Health Status

    Evaluated using the EQ-5D-3L questionnaire at baseline, 3 and 6 months, and at the end of treatment or 12 months, as well as using the ECOG performance status measure after each cycle

    Time frame: At the end of treatment or 12 months

07

Results

Posted May 17, 2019
Limitations and caveats
Quality of life, a secondary endpoint, could not be analysed due to the low questionnaire completion rate.

Participant flow

74 patients were consented and registered from 14 sites between May 2011 and October 2014, and 67 of these registered patients were found to be evaluable. This is larger than the planned sample size of 65 patients, to compensate for unevaluable patients.

Participant flow — Overall Study
Milestone6MP/MTX
Started74
Completed67
Not completed7

Outcome measures

PrimaryObjective Response Rate to 6-mercaptopurine and Methotrexate (6MP/MTX) in This Patient Population.

1st stage: If less than 3/30 evaluable patients respond at 8 weeks the trial will be stopped for futility. If 3 or more out of 30 evaluable patients respond then a further 35 patients will be recruited (2nd stage) - this was met. The proportion of patients responding to treatment (complete response, partial response or stable disease) at the second stage will be presented per Response Evaluation Criteria In Solid Tumours (RECIST) criteria version 1.1 measured radiologically with computerised tomography (CT) and/or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); the same method is used at baseline and at follow-up: Complete Response (CR): Disappearance of all target lesions. Partial Response (PR): At least a 30% decrease in the sum of diameters of target lesions. Stable Disease (SD): Neither sufficient shrinkage to qualify for PR nor sufficient increase to qualify for PD. Patients who yield progressive disease (PD) are classed as non-responders.

Time frame:
8 weeks after start of treatment
Reported as:
Count of participants · Participants
Objective Response Rate to 6-mercaptopurine and Methotrexate (6MP/MTX) in This Patient Population.
Participants6-Mercaptopurine and Methotrexate (6MP/MTX)
Objective Response Rate to 6-mercaptopurine and Methotrexate (6MP/MTX) in This Patient Population.22
SecondaryQuality of Life - EuroQol Group, Five Dimensions, Three-level (EQ-5D-3L) Standardized Instrument for Measuring Generic Health Status

Evaluated using the EQ-5D-3L questionnaire at baseline, 3 and 6 months, and at the end of treatment or 12 months, as well as using the ECOG performance status measure after each cycle

Time frame:
At the end of treatment or 12 months

No measurements were reported for this outcome.

Adverse events

Collected over From start of treatment until end of follow-up, up to 2 years.. Non-serious events are listed at a 4% frequency threshold.

Adverse event summary by group
GroupDeathsSeriousOther
6MP/MTX52/67 (77.6%)33/67 (49.3%)46/67 (68.7%)
Most frequent serious events
Showing 10 of 25
Most frequent serious events
Event6MP/MTX
Neutrophil count decreasedInvestigations6/67
Abdominal painGastrointestinal disorders5/67
Thromboembolic eventVascular disorders3/67
Lung infectionInfections and infestations3/67
FeverGeneral disorders2/67
VomitingGastrointestinal disorders2/67
SepsisInfections and infestations2/67
Urinary tract infectionInfections and infestations2/67
PalpitationsCardiac disorders1/67
Tumour painNeoplasms benign, malignant and unspecified (incl cysts and polyps)1/67
Most frequent other events
Showing 10 of 18
Most frequent other events
Event6MP/MTX
Neutrophil count decreasedInvestigations24/67
AnaemiaBlood and lymphatic system disorders22/67
FatigueGeneral disorders19/67
White blood cell count decreasedInvestigations15/67
NauseaGastrointestinal disorders12/67
VomitingGastrointestinal disorders9/67
Abdominal painHepatobiliary disorders8/67
Mucositis OralGastrointestinal disorders6/67
Platelet count decreasedInvestigations5/67
Alanine Aminotransferase IncreasedInvestigations4/67

Baseline characteristics

Age, Continuous
Age, Continuous(years)6MP/MTX
Mean55.9 (32 to 80)
Age, Customized
Age, Customized(Participants)6MP/MTX
Age categorical — 18-64 years54
Age categorical — 65-84 years13
Age categorical — 85 years and over0
Sex: Female, Male
Sex: Female, Male(Participants)6MP/MTX
Female67
Male0
Race and Ethnicity Not Collected
Race and Ethnicity Not Collected(Participants)6MP/MTX
Region of Enrollment
Region of Enrollment(participants)6MP/MTX
United Kingdom67
Breast Cancer gene (BRCA) Status
Breast Cancer gene (BRCA) Status(Participants)6MP/MTX
BRCA 140
BRCA 227
Prior poly-Adenosine diphosphate (ADP) ribose polymerase (PARP) treatment
Prior poly-Adenosine diphosphate (ADP) ribose polymerase (PARP) treatment(Participants)6MP/MTX
Yes26
No41
Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) Performance Status
Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) Performance Status(Participants)6MP/MTX
PS 027
PS 136
PS 24

2 further baseline measures are reported on the registry.

08

Study locations

1 site
  • Churchill Hospital
    Oxford, OX3 7LJ, United Kingdom
09

References and documents

Publications

  • Roberts C, Strauss VY, Kopijasz S, Gourley C, Hall M, Montes A, Abraham J, Clamp A, Kennedy R, Banerjee S, Folkes LK, Stratford M, Nicum S. Results of a phase II clinical trial of 6-mercaptopurine (6MP) and methotrexate in patients with BRCA-defective tumours. Br J Cancer. 2020 Feb;122(4):483-490. doi: 10.1038/s41416-019-0674-4. Epub 2019 Dec 9. PubMed 31813938 ↗
  • Nicum S, Roberts C, Boyle L, Kopijasz S, Gourley C, Hall M, Montes A, Poole C, Collins L, Schuh A, Dutton SJ; 6MP Collaborative Group. A phase II clinical trial of 6-mercaptopurine (6MP) and methotrexate in patients with BRCA defective tumours: a study protocol. BMC Cancer. 2014 Dec 19;14:983. doi: 10.1186/1471-2407-14-983. PubMed 25526776 ↗
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Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
Not marked actual or estimatedDates not marked actual or estimated

The record gives a start of May 2011, a primary completion of Dec 2014 and a completion of May 2015. It does not say whether these dates are actual or estimated.

Results were first posted in May 2019, 4 years 5 months after primary completion.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Aug 10, 2011
First posted
Sep 12, 2011
Start
May 2011
Primary completionActual
Dec 2014
CompletionActual
May 2015
Results first posted
May 17, 2019
Last update
Jul 9, 2019
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Jul 9, 2019, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
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Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT01432145
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Sep 12, 2011
Start date
May 2011
Primary completion
Dec 2014
Completion
May 2015
Results posted
May 17, 2019
Last update
Jul 9, 2019

Study contacts

Shibani Nicum
principal investigator · University of Oxford

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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Studies of the drugs tested here: Mercaptopurine · Methotrexate

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