ClinicalTrials.gg
RecruitingNCT04098744ART-CIN_IIBUpdated Oct 2, 2025

Artesunate Vaginal Inserts for the Treatment of Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia (CIN2/3)

A Phase 2 interventional study of Artesunate vaginal insert and Placebo vaginal insert in CIN 2/3, HPV Infection and Pre-Cancerous Dysplasia, sponsored by Frantz Viral Therapeutics, LLC. Recruiting at 7 sites in United States. Open to female participants aged 25 Years to 100 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2025-10-02.

Sponsored by Frantz Viral Therapeutics, LLC · Phase 2, Interventional, and Treatment

From the registry’s dates

  • Primary completion was expected by Jul 2026, 3 months ago, but the record still lists the study as recruiting.
  • Started Sep 2020; still recruiting 6 years 2 months later.
Phase
Phase 2
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
78
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
25 Years to 100 Years
Sex
Female
01

Study summary

This is a phase II double blind, placebo-controlled, randomized study of Artesunate vaginal inserts for the treatment of women who have cervical high grade intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN2/3).

Read the detailed description

Eligible participants in this study are randomized 2:1 to receive either artesunate or placebo vaginal inserts for the treatment of CIN2/3. Both groups receive three 5-day cycles of the respective drug, at weeks 0, 2, and 4. Dosing visits can be done as telehealth visits (medication is mailed to the patient's home). Participants are followed after receiving artesunate at weeks 6, 17, and 40. All participants undergo a LEEP procedure at week 17.

Primary Objective: To evaluate the histopathologic response to three 5-day cycles of artesunate vaginal inserts in adult females with biopsy-proven HPV-associated CIN 2/3.

Secondary Objectives:

  • To evaluate the safety of artesunate vaginal inserts for the treatment of CIN2/3
  • To evaluate the viral clearance after three 5-day cycles of artesunate vaginal inserts in adult females with biopsy-proven HPV-associated CIN 2/3.
  • To evaluate viral clearance after three 5-day cycles of artesunate and the LEEP procedure
02

Conditions studied

  • CIN 2/3
  • HPV Infection
  • Pre-Cancerous Dysplasia
  • Cervical Dysplasia
  • HPV Related Disease

Keywords

  • treatment study
  • cancer prevention
  • non-surgical
  • HPV related disease
  • CIN
  • topical treatment
  • vaginal inserts
  • artesunate
  • artemisinin
  • non-invasive
  • high risk HPV
  • vaginal suppository
03

In context

Papillomavirus Infections

576 studies on the registry are indexed under Papillomavirus Infections; 132 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 78 is below the median of 235 across 402 interventional studies indexed under Papillomavirus Infections.

Browse Papillomavirus Infections studies →

Lead sponsor

Frantz Viral Therapeutics, LLC is the lead sponsor of 4 studies on the registry; 3 are open to participants now.

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

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
25 Years to 100 Years
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

  • Adult females age ≥ 25 years
  • Capable of
  • Any HPV genotype detectable by DNA test/HPV genotyping
  • Colposcopically-directed, confirmed tissue diagnosis of cervical high grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (CIN2, CIN3, or CIN2/3)
  • Women of agree to use through week17 of the study.
  • Weight ≥ 50kg

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Pregnant and nursing women
  • Active disease
  • Taking medication
  • seropositivity
  • Immunocompromised subjects
  • Evidence of concurrent cervical adenocarcinoma in situ
  • Concurrent except for nonmelanoma skin lesions, because treatment for other cancers have systemic effects
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(8)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

Informed consent

Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.

You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.

Histologically or cytologically confirmed

The diagnosis was confirmed by looking at a sample under a microscope: tissue from a biopsy or surgery (histology), or cells from a fluid or needle sample (cytology).

Your pathology report is the document that shows this.

Childbearing potential

Able to become pregnant: from the first period until menopause, unless permanently unable to through surgery (removal of the womb, or of both ovaries or both fallopian tubes).

Criteria for people of childbearing potential usually ask for a negative pregnancy test and for contraception during the study and for a time after it.

Contraception

Ways of preventing pregnancy. “Highly effective” methods fail less than 1% of the time a year when used correctly — for example an IUD or an implant.

Criteria usually say which methods count and how long to keep using them after the last dose, sometimes for male participants too. Some studies accept a partner’s vasectomy if it was confirmed successful and that person is the participant’s only sexual partner.

Autoimmune disease

A condition in which the immune system attacks the body’s own tissues, such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, psoriasis, type 1 diabetes or inflammatory bowel disease.

Immunotherapy studies often leave out active autoimmune disease, and some name exceptions, such as thyroid disease on replacement hormone. Check the exceptions this study lists.

Immunosuppression

A weakened immune system. It can come from an illness, such as HIV or some blood cancers, or from medicines that turn the immune system down, for example after an organ transplant or for an autoimmune disease; steroids at higher doses count.

Read whether the line is about a condition or about medicines, and which medicines and doses it means.

HIV

The human immunodeficiency virus, which weakens the immune system.

Many studies now accept people whose HIV is controlled on treatment, judged by the viral load and the CD4 count. Check the limits this study sets.

Cancer (malignancy)

Malignancy means cancer. Criteria about another or earlier malignancy ask whether you have had a different cancer, usually within a set number of years.

Some are commonly allowed, such as treated skin cancers other than melanoma and early cancers removed completely — check the exceptions this study lists.

05

Study design

Phase
Phase 2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Double (Participant, Investigator)
Enrollment
78 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Artesunate vaginal insert

    Participants will receive three 5-day cycles of artesunate vaginal inserts, 200mg/day, at week 0, week 2, week 4.

    Drug: Artesunate vaginal insert

  • Placebo comparator
    Placebo vaginal inserts

    Participants will receive three 5-day cycles of placebo vaginal inserts, at week 0, week 2, and week 4.

    Drug: Placebo vaginal insert

Interventions

  • Artesunate formulated as vaginal inserts, 200mg

    Also known as: Artesunic acid, DHA, artemisinin

  • DrugPlacebo vaginal insert

    Placebo for artesunate vaginal inserts

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Proportion of participants with histologic regression by week 17

    Number of participants who undergo histologic regression to cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) 1 or less by week 17, following three 5-day cycles of artesunate vaginal inserts, as determined by the LEEP histopathologic analysis

    Time frame: 17 weeks

Secondary outcomes

  1. Number of participants who have achieved clearance of detectable human papilloma virus (HPV) by week 17

    Number of participants who had HPV strains detected at study entry which become undetectable by week 17

    Time frame: 17 weeks

  2. Number of participants who have achieved clearance of detectable human papilloma virus (HPV) after three 5-day cycles of artesunate and the LEEP procedure.

    Number of participants who had HPV strains detected at study entry which become undetectable after three 5-day cycles of artesunate and the LEEP procedure

    Time frame: 40 weeks

Other outcomes

  1. Number of participants with Treatment-Emergent Adverse Events (TEAE)

    Number of participants who had adverse events, as defined by CTCAE v5.0, related to the study intervention

    Time frame: 6 weeks

  2. Number of participants who withdrew from the study due to TEAEs

    Number of participants who were withdrawn from the study due to adverse events related to the study drug

    Time frame: 6 weeks

07

Study locations

7 of 7 sites recruiting
  • Florida Gynecologic Oncology
    Fort Myers, Florida 33905, United States
    Recruiting
    • Cami Hansen · Contactcami.hansen25@gmail.com · 239-334-6626
    • Fadi Abu Shahin, MD · Principal investigator
    • Samith Sandadi, MD · Sub investigator
  • University of Michigan
    Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, United States
    Recruiting
    • Mubeenah Syedah · Contactsymubeen@med.umich.edu · 734-998-6349
    • Diane Harper, MD · Principal investigator
  • Cleveland Clinic Fairview Hospital
    Cleveland, Ohio 44111, United States
    Recruiting
    • Donna White · Contactwhited11@ccf.org · 216-445-8090
    • Megan Park · Contactparkm2@ccf.org · 216-445-8090
    • Chad Michener, MD · Principal investigator
    • Mariam AlHilli, MD · Sub investigator
    • Steven Waggonner, MD · Sub investigator
    • Robert DeBernardo, MD · Sub investigator
    • Roberto Vargas, MD · Sub investigator
  • Cleveland Clinic Foundation
    Cleveland, Ohio 44195, United States
    Recruiting
    • Donna White · Contactwhited11@ccf.org · 216-445-8090
    • Megan Park · Contactparkm2@ccf.org · 216-445-8090
    • Chad Michener, MD · Principal investigator
    • Mariam AlHilli, MD · Sub investigator
    • Steven Waggonner, MD · Sub investigator
    • Robert DeBernardo, MD · Sub investigator
    • Roberto Vargas, MD · Sub investigator
  • Hillcrest Hospital
    Mayfield Heights, Ohio 44124, United States
    Recruiting
    • Donna White · Contactwhited11@ccf.org · 216-445-8090
    • Megan Park · Contactparkm2@ccf.org · 216-445-8090
    • Chad Michener, MD · Principal investigator
    • Mariam AlHilli, MD · Sub investigator
    • Steven Waggonner, MD · Sub investigator
    • Robert DeBernardo, MD · Sub investigator
    • Roberto Vargas, MD · Sub investigator
    • Lindsey Beffa, MD · Sub investigator
  • The Harris Health System (L.B.J Hospital)
    Houston, Texas 77026, United States
    Recruiting
  • University of Texas, M.D. Anderson
    Houston, Texas 77030, United States
    Recruiting
08

References and documents

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

No publications or documents are linked to this record.

09

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reachedSimilar studies: half by the dot; the band is the middle halfHalf of similar studies reached it by the dot; the band is the middle half, from a quarter to three quarters

Started Sep 2020 (actual). Primary completion is estimated for Jul 2026, 70 months after the start.

Of 41 phase 2 interventional studies under Papillomavirus Infections, half reached primary completion within 33 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 13 and three quarters within 77. This study's planned 70 months is above that.

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

Registered
Sep 19, 2019
First posted
Sep 23, 2019
StartActual
Sep 9, 2020
Primary completionEst.
Jul 31, 2026
CompletionEst.
Dec 31, 2026
Last update
Oct 2, 2025
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 Oct 2, 2025, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT04098744
Lead sponsor
Frantz Viral Therapeutics, LLC
Collaborators
Amarex Clinical Research, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Harris Health System (L.B.J. Hospital), The Cleveland Clinic, University of Michigan, Florida Gynecologic Oncology
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Sep 23, 2019
Start date
Sep 9, 2020
Primary completion
Jul 31, 2026 (estimated)
Completion
Dec 31, 2026 (estimated)
Last update
Oct 2, 2025

Study contacts

Mihaela Plesa, BA, CCRP
Contact
FVTinfo@frantzgroup.com
440-255-1155 ext. 100
Ahmad Bayat, MD
Contact
ahmadb@amarexcro.com
(301) 956-2523

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
Yes
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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Studies of the drug tested here: Artesunate

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