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RecruitingNCT04354649IMPACT 2Updated Jun 18, 2025

Immune-Mediated Pathophysiology And Clinical Triage Program

A Phase 2 interventional study of Hydroxychloroquine and Placebo in Arthritis and Arthralgia, sponsored by AHS Cancer Control Alberta. Recruiting at 1 site in Canada. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2025-06-18.

Sponsored by AHS Cancer Control Alberta · 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 2021; still recruiting 5 years later.
Phase
Phase 2
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
46
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

Many people develop joint pain, stiffness and swelling due to their cancer treatment that targets the immune system. The severity of symptoms ranges from mild to debilitating and sometimes requires delaying or stopping cancer treatment.

The usual plan is to discontinue cancer treatment and give relatively high doses of a medication called prednisone (a steroid, which is an anti-inflammatory medication which may suppress the immune system) with a gradual lowering of the dose over several weeks. While this can be effective, prednisone can cause a number of side effects, and it is not known if this is the best or safest treatment.

Hydroxychloroquine is a medication that is often used to treat inflammatory joint pain, such as rheumatoid arthritis, has relatively few side effects when compared to prednisone, and may be effective at treating this condition.

The purpose of this study is to find out whether it is better to receive hydroxychloroquine and prednisone, or prednisone alone for joint pain. To do this, some participants will get hydroxychloroquine and some will receive a placebo (a substance that looks like the study drug but does not have any active or medicinal ingredients). A placebo is used to make the results of the study more reliable.

This is a double-blinded study, which means that neither participants nor the study doctor or study staff will know which group participants are allocated. After 12 weeks of study treatment, the blind will be opened and participants will be informed which treatment was given.

02

Conditions studied

  • Arthritis
  • Arthralgia
03

In context

Arthritis

3,554 studies on the registry are indexed under Arthritis; 317 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 46 is below the median of 90 across 2,377 interventional studies indexed under Arthritis.

Browse Arthritis studies →

Lead sponsor

AHS Cancer Control Alberta is the lead sponsor of 182 studies on the registry; 31 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
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

  1. Patients must be 18 years of age, or older;
  2. Patients must be capable of providing consent to enrolment and treatment.
  3. Patients with a performance status of ECOG 0-2 will be eligible for enrolment (see appendix A).
  4. Patients with histologically confirmed cancer receiving anti-PD1 or anti-PDL1 monoclonal antibody ICI therapy, either alone or in combination with anti-CTLA4 monoclonal antibody ICI therapy who develop CTCAEv5.0 grade ≥2 arthritis or arthralgia that has developed on, or after, ICI therapy and is felt to be treatment related (irAA).
  5. Adequate hepatic and renal function defined by the following laboratory parameters:

    • AST and ALT and alkaline phosphatase ≤ 2.5x ULN,
    • Total bilirubin ≤ 1.5x ULN,
    • Serum creatinine ≤ upper limit of institutional normal OR calculated creatinine clearance of ≥ 60 mL/min using the Cockcroft-Gault formula.
  6. Women of child bearing potential (WOCBP) must have a negative serum (or urine) pregnancy test at the time of screening. WOCBP is defined as any female who has experienced menarche and who has not undergone surgical sterilization (hysterectomy or bilateral oophorectomy or bilateral salpingectomy) and is not postmenopausal. Menopause is defined as 12 months of amenorrhea in a woman over age 45 years in the absence of other biological or physiological causes. In addition, females under the age of 55 years must have a serum follicle stimulating hormone, (FSH) level > 40 mIU/mL to confirm menopause.
  7. Patients of childbearing / reproductive potential should use highly effective birth control methods, during the study treatment period and for a period of 3 months after the last dose of study drug. A highly effective method of birth control is defined as those that result in low failure rate (i.e. less than 1% per year) when used consistently and correctly. These may include: hormonal contraceptives (e.g. combined oral contraceptives, patch, vaginal ring, injectables, and implants); intrauterine device (IUD) or intrauterine system (IUS); vasectomy and tubal ligation. Double-barrier methods may be acceptable in circumstances when highly effective methods cannot be implemented (e.g. male condom with diaphragm, male condom with cervical cap). Note: Contraceptive requirements for the oncology regiments will apply, if they are more stringent than those for this trial. Abstinence is acceptable if this is established and preferred contraception for the patient and is accepted as a local standard.
  8. Female patients who are breast-feeding should discontinue nursing prior to the first dose of study treatment and until 3 months after the last dose of study drug.
  9. Male patients should agree to not donate sperm during the study and for a period of at least 3 months after last dose of study drug.
  10. Absence of any condition hampering compliance with the study protocol and follow- up schedule; those conditions should be discussed with the patient before registration in the trial.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. History of inflammatory arthritis, including, but not limited to: Rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, Sjogren's syndrome, Ankylosing spondylitis or other chronic inflammatory arthritis. Note: Patients with a known history of stable osteoarthritis will not be excluded.
  2. Patients with an indication for systemic immunosuppressive medications or corticosteroids. Patients with CTCAEv5.0 grade ≥2 irAE's other than irIAA (ie. colitis, pneumonitis, rash, etc) are not eligible for trial, with the exception of endocrinopathies that are being treated with hormone replacement alone and not systemic immunosuppressive medications or corticosteroids.
  3. Patients weighing \< 40 kg.
  4. Patients with G6PD deficiency, porphyria or psoriasis.
  5. Clinically significant (i.e., active) cardiovascular disease: cerebral vascular accident/stroke (\< 6 months prior to enrollment), myocardial infarction (\< 6 months prior to enrollment), unstable angina, congestive heart failure (≥ New York Heart Association Classification Class II), or serious cardiac arrhythmia requiring medication.
  6. Prolonged corrected QT interval or concurrent medications that prolong QT interval.
  7. Diagnosis of immunodeficiency.
  8. Current use of immunosuppressive medication, EXCEPT for the following: a. intranasal, inhaled, topical steroids, or local steroid injection (e.g., intra-articular injection); b. Steroids as premedication for hypersensitivity reactions (e.g., CT scan premedication).
  9. Known prior severe hypersensitivity to investigational product or any component in its formulations, including known severe hypersensitivity reactions to monoclonal antibodies (CTCAEv5.0 Grade ≥ 3).
  10. Other severe acute or chronic medical conditions including inflammatory bowel disease, immune pneumonitis, pulmonary fibrosis or psychiatric conditions including recent (within the past year) or active suicidal ideation or behavior; or laboratory abnormalities that may increase the risk associated with study participation or study treatment administration or may interfere with the interpretation of study results and, in the judgment of the investigator, would make the patient inappropriate for entry into this study.
05

Study design

Phase
Phase 2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Triple (Participant, Care provider, Investigator)
Enrollment
46 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Hydroxychloroquine, plus prednisone

    Hydroxychloroquine 5mg/kg PO daily, plus prednisone starting at 20 mg PO daily for 8 weeks tapering dose.

    Drug: Hydroxychloroquine

  • Placebo comparator
    Hydroxychloroquine-matching placebo, plus prednisone

    Matching placebo daily, plus prednisone starting at 20 mg PO daily for 8 weeks tapering dose.

    Other: Placebo

Interventions

  • DrugHydroxychloroquine

    Hydroxychloroquine 5mg/kg PO daily

  • OtherPlacebo

    Hydroxychloroquine-matching placebo

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Recurrence of grade ≥2 Immune-Related Arthritis or Arthralgia

    Recurrence will be defined as the development of grade ≥2 irAA in a participant whose symptoms initially improved to grade ≤1. Symptoms will be investigator assessed and graded according to CTCAEv5.0.

    Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 1 year

Secondary outcomes

  1. Total Steroid Usage

    The total cumulative dose of prednisone measured in mg used by the participant. If corticosteroids other than prednisone are used, their equivalent dosage in mg of prednisone will be calculated and used for this analysis.

    Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 1 year

  2. Development of immune related adverse events (irAE's) other than irAA

    Defined as the emergence of adverse events that were not present at study baseline that are deemed by the investigator to be related to prior use of immune checkpoint inhibitors. Causality will be investigator assessed and graded according to CTCAEv5.0.

    Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 1 year

  3. Adverse Event

    The emergence of new or worsening baseline symptoms, physical findings, or laboratory/imaging abnormalities. Causality to study treatment, immune checkpoint inhibitors, or underlying disease status will be investigator assessed and graded according to CTCAEv5.0.

    Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 1 year

  4. Re-initiation of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy

    The proportion of participants in each study arm that are re-treated with an immune checkpoint inhibitor.

    Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 1 year

  5. Response to standard of care treatments after Week 13 Day 1.

    Participants that still have active irAA symptoms of CTCAEv5.0 grade ≥1 after unblinding at Week 13 Day 1 visit who have a change in irAA therapy.

    Time frame: From Week 13 Day 1 to Week 52.

  6. Progression free survival

    The time elapsed between randomization and tumor progression (radiographically or clinically) or death from any cause.

    Time frame: Upon completion of follow-up period, an average of 3 years after intervention

07

Study locations

1 of 1 sites recruiting
  • Cross Cancer Institute
    Edmonton, Alberta T6G 1Z2, Canada
    Recruiting
08

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Jun 18, 2025, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
09

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT04354649
Lead sponsor
AHS Cancer Control Alberta
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Apr 21, 2020
Start date
Sep 16, 2021
Primary completion
Jul 2026 (estimated)
Completion
Jul 2029 (estimated)
Last update
Jun 18, 2025

Study contacts

Michael Kolinsky
Contact
Michael.Kolinsky@ahs.ca
780-432-8762
Michael Kolinsky
principal investigator · AHS-CCI

Oversight

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

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