ClinicalTrials.gg
RecruitingNCT05706779NEORAFUpdated Sep 2, 2025

Encorafenib Plus Cetuximab in a Neoadjuvant Setting in Patients With BRAF Mutation Localised Colon or Upper Rectum Cancer

A Phase 2 interventional study of Encorafenib Oral Capsule + Cetuximab in Colorectal Cancer and BRAF V600E Mutation Positive, sponsored by Federation Francophone de Cancerologie Digestive. Recruiting at 1 site in France. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2025-09-02.

Sponsored by Federation Francophone de Cancerologie Digestive · Phase 2, Interventional, and Treatment

From the registry’s dates

  • Started Feb 2023; still recruiting 3 years 8 months later.
Phase
Phase 2
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
30
Allocation
Not applicable
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

This is a pilot trial which aims to assess the concept of anti-BRAF neoadjuvant treatment (encorafenib) in combination with cetuximab in patients with colon cancer or rT3/T4 supra-peritoneal upper rectal cancer based on a pre-operative CT-scan. About 10% of patients will have a mutated BRAF V600E tumour and the objective is to include 30 patients with this mutation.

If the tumour is not confirmed as a carrier of the BRAF V600E mutation or has an RAS mutation according to centralised assessment, treatment will be discontinued in this patient and cancer surgery will be organised as soon as possible. The patient will be excluded from the statistical analysis and will be replaced by a new patient in order to obtain 30 patients with confirmed BRAF V600E mutation and RAS wild type . It should be noted that less than a 3% discrepancy between the numbers of local laboratory results and central analysis results, has been reported in over 600 BRAF V600E mutated colon cancers in the BEACON CRC study. Based on these figures, there should be 0 or 1 patient with discrepant results in the study presented here.

Furthermore, in the hypothetical case of a patient who is an early permanent discontinuation of the study prior to surgery, this patient will be replaced in order to obtain a total of 30 patients who underwent surgery after neoadjuvant treatment.

02

Conditions studied

  • Colorectal Cancer
  • BRAF V600E Mutation Positive
03

In context

Colorectal Neoplasms

6,541 studies on the registry are indexed under Colorectal Neoplasms; 1,667 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 30 is below the median of 76 across 4,800 interventional studies indexed under Colorectal Neoplasms.

Browse Colorectal Neoplasms studies →

Lead sponsor

Federation Francophone de Cancerologie Digestive is the lead sponsor of 63 studies on the registry; 15 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

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

  • signed and dated by the patient and the investigator
  • Age ≥18 years at time of informed consent
  • Adenocarcinoma of the colon or of the upper rectum (supra-peritoneal) considered operable and confirmed, localised, mutated BRAF V600E determined in a specimen and resectable after CT-scan assessment.

Remark: Centralised analysis of BRAF status will be performed in order to confirm the existence of the mutation concomitantly with the 1st cycle of therapy

  • Tumour stage rT4 or rT3 with ≥ 5 mm extra-mural extension in a CT-scan.

    • rT3 with high risk: Tumour spread from the peripheral serosa and extension to the adjacent peritoneal fat of more than 5 mm in its longest diameter (both axial and coronal planes)
    • rT4: Extension to an adjacent organ
  • Patient able to provide a sufficient quantity of representative tumour sample (slides or extracted tumor DNA) for centralised analysis of RAS and BRAF mutational status.
  • 0 or 1
  • Haematological function considered satisfactory:

    • Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) ≥ 1,500/mm3
    • ≥ 100,000/mm3
    • ≥ 9g/dL
  • > 50 mL/min (according to formula).
  • Serum levels of magnesium within normal limits of the centre.
  • Total serum ≤ 25 μmol/L, and/or AST ≤ 2.5 x .
  • Cardiac function considered satisfactory:

    o Corrected mean for heart rate according to the Fridericia formula (QTcF) ≤ 480 ms.

  • Patient able to take medicinal products by mouth (OD).
  • Female Patients for at least one year or surgically infertile for at least 6 weeks, or effective for male and female patients of for 2 months after the end of the treatments
  • A negative pregnancy test for inclusion for all female patients of child-bearing FFCD 2006 - NEORAF Version 1.0- 21/October2022 Page 7 of 69 potential.
  • Patient covered by a plan of the French Social Security system

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Existence of distant or adjacent nodules of peritoneal carcinosis (M1).
  • Existence of a dual-tumour location.
  • known RAS mutation
  • Peritonitis (secondary to perforation of the tumour) or symptomatic colonic occlusion or a temporary colostomy to prevent a sub-occlusion.
  • Patient in whom an indication for radiotherapy exists based on the multidisciplinary meeting/board pre-operatively.
  • Previous treatment with a BRAF inhibitor, cetuximab or other anti-EGFR treatment.
  • History of acute or chronic pancreatitis within the 6 months prior to start of the study treatment.
  • A history of chronic inflammatory bowel disease requiring treatment (with immuno-modulators or immuno-suppressants) ≤ 12 months before start of study treatment.
  • Patient with decreased cardiovascular function or cardiovascular disease:

    1. History of myocardial infarction, acute coronary syndrome (including unstable angina, coronary artery bypass grafting, coronary angioplasty or stent placement) ≤ 6 months prior to start of the study treatment.
    2. Symptomatic congestive heart failure (CHF) (grade 2 or higher), history or current evidence of cardiac arrhythmia and/or a clinically significant conduction disorder ≤ 6 months prior to start of the study treatment, except atrial fibrillation with controlled heart rate and paroxysmal supra-ventricular tachycardia.
  • class B or C cirrhosis.
  • Deterioration of gastro-intestinal function or a disease which may significantly impair the absorption of encorafenib, e.g.: ulcer disease, uncontrolled nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, malabsorption syndrome, small bowel resection
  • A previous or concomitant malignant tumour within 5 years prior to the study. Except for basal cell or squamous skin cancer, superficial cancer of the bladder, intra-epithelial carcinoma of the prostate, carcinoma in situ of the uterine cervix or any other malignant tumour which has been treated adequately and which has not recurred during the three years prior to entry in the study.
  • A concomitant neuro-muscular disease associated with high levels of creatinine kinase (CK).

Remark: inflammatory muscular disease, muscular dystrophy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), spinal muscular atrophy.

  • History of infection with (HIV).
  • Active infection with or .
  • Known existence of Gilbert syndrome
  • Use of medicinal plants/dietary supplements or other medicinal products or foods that are potent inducing agents or inhibitors of cytochrome P450 (CYP) 3A4/5 ≤ 1 week before start of the study treatment.
  • Known severe reactions to monoclonal antibodies or BRAF-inhibitors (grade ≥ 3), any history of anaphylaxis, or uncontrolled asthma (that is, 3 or more features of partially controlled asthma)
  • Participation in a clinical study with administration of an product within 4 weeks or five times the half-life of the investigational product, according to the longest period, prior to the first dose of the study treatment.
  • Persons who are deprived of their freedom or who are under guardianship
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(23)

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.

Biopsy and archival tissue

A biopsy takes a small piece of tissue to examine. “Archival tissue” is a sample already taken, for example at diagnosis, and kept by the hospital.

Whether a stored sample will do depends on when it was taken, how much there is and what the study needs. Ask whether the study accepts your stored sample or needs a new biopsy.

ECOG performance status

A scale of how much an illness limits everyday activity. For people being assessed to join a study, scores run from 0 (fully active) to 4; lower is more active.

0
Fully active, no restrictions.
1
Limited in strenuous activity, but walking and able to do light work, such as housework or office work.
2
Walking and able to look after yourself, but unable to work; up and about more than half of waking hours.
3
Able to look after yourself only in part; in bed or a chair more than half of waking hours.
4
Unable to look after yourself at all; in bed or a chair all day.

Studies most often ask for 0–1 or 0–2. Your doctor gives the score; the WHO scale uses the same steps. The full scale also has 5, which records death.

Platelets

Blood cells that help blood clot. Too few raises the risk of bleeding and bruising. A usual adult range is about 150–400 × 10⁹/L (150,000–400,000 per µL); each lab has its own reference range.

Hemoglobin (Hb)

The protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen. A low level is anaemia, which can cause tiredness and breathlessness. Measured in g/dL or g/L (9 g/dL is 90 g/L).

Creatinine clearance (CrCl)

How quickly the kidneys clear creatinine, a waste product, from the blood. A study may estimate it from a blood test with age, weight and sex (often by the Cockcroft–Gault formula), or measure it using blood and urine collected over a set time. Given in mL/min; higher is better.

GFR and eGFR (kidney filtering)

GFR (glomerular filtration rate) is how much blood the kidneys filter each minute. It is usually estimated from a blood test — eGFR, by formulas such as CKD-EPI or MDRD — and some studies ask for it to be measured directly instead. Usually given in mL/min/1.73 m².

Check the method, the units and the minimum the study states. A value of 90 or above is in the normal-or-high range, but kidney damage can show in other tests too.

Bilirubin

A yellow substance made when red blood cells are broken down, which the liver clears. A high level can mean a problem with the liver or the bile ducts.

Criteria often allow more for people with Gilbert’s syndrome, a harmless inherited condition that raises bilirubin.

ALT and AST (liver enzymes)

Two enzymes measured in a routine blood test of the liver. Higher levels can mean the liver is under strain or damaged. SGPT and SGOT are older names for ALT and AST.

Criteria usually give a limit as a multiple of the upper limit of normal (ULN), often higher when cancer has spread to the liver.

ULN (upper limit of normal)

The top of the normal range for a blood test, as set by the laboratory that runs it. Each lab prints its own range next to your result.

“≤ 2.5 × ULN” means the result can be up to two and a half times that top value.

QT and QTc

On an ECG, the QT interval is the time the heart’s lower chambers take to activate electrically and recover in each beat. QTc is that time adjusted for heart rate (QTcF by Fridericia’s formula, QTcB by Bazett’s). Some medicines lengthen it, and a long QTc can raise the risk of a dangerous heart rhythm.

The study may name a correction formula and a limit in milliseconds, often around 450–480.

Postmenopausal

Periods have stopped for good: usually no period for 12 months in a row without another medical reason, sometimes confirmed by a blood test (FSH).

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.

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.

Investigational drug or device

A drug or device being studied in a clinical trial.

It may be new, or already approved and being studied for another use, dose or form. Criteria often leave out people who took part in another study of one within a recent period, commonly 30 days or five half-lives.

Metastases

Cancer that has spread from where it began to other parts of the body. “Metastatic” cancer is cancer that has spread this way.

Clinically significant

Judged by the study doctor to matter for your health or for the study. It is a doctor’s decision, so ask the study team if you are unsure whether something counts.

Child-Pugh class

A score of how well the liver works in people with liver disease such as cirrhosis: class A is mild, B moderate and C severe.

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.

Hepatitis B tests

Hepatitis B is a virus that infects the liver. These are separate tests: HBsAg positive usually means a current infection (a recent vaccination can briefly cause it too); total anti-HBc (HBcAb) positive means an infection now or in the past; HBV DNA measures how much virus is in the blood.

Some studies accept a past infection if HBV DNA is undetectable, sometimes with antiviral medicine during the study. Check what this study allows.

Hepatitis C tests

Hepatitis C is a virus that infects the liver. An HCV antibody test can stay positive after an infection has cleared (and is occasionally positive without one); an HCV RNA test shows whether the virus is there now.

After treatment, hepatitis C counts as cured when HCV RNA is still undetectable 12 weeks or more after the treatment ended. Studies often accept people cured this way.

Hypersensitivity

An allergy, or another reaction of the immune system, to a substance. “Hypersensitivity to the study drug” means a known allergic reaction to it — not every side effect a medicine can have.

05

Study design

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

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Encorafenib + Cetuximab

    Drug: Encorafenib Oral Capsule + Cetuximab

Interventions

  • DrugEncorafenib Oral Capsule + Cetuximab

    Drug pages: Encorafenib · Cetuximab

    Encorafenib: 4 capsules 75 mg/day (300 mg) , 7 days/7 during 6 weeks Cetuximab: 500mg/m2 intravenous route every 2 weeks (D1, D14, D28), for 3 cycles over 4 weeks.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. To assess the rate of significant tumour regression (TRG 0 to 2 according to Ryan's modified score of the AJCC 2010)

    with centralised review after neoadjuvant treatment with encorafenib and cetuximab, in patients with RAS wild type localised colon or upper rectum cancer (CC) and carriers of the BRAF V600E mutation.

    Time frame: 6 months after completing inclusions

07

Study locations

1 of 1 sites recruiting
08

References and documents

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

No publications or documents are linked to this record.

09

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Sep 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
NCT05706779
Lead sponsor
Federation Francophone de Cancerologie Digestive
Collaborators
Pierre Fabre Laboratories, Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Jan 31, 2023
Start date
Feb 13, 2023
Primary completion
Dec 30, 2026 (estimated)
Completion
May 31, 2029 (estimated)
Last update
Sep 2, 2025

Study contacts

Project Manager
Contact
ffcd2006.neoraf@ffcd.fr
0033380393483
Claire Gallois, MD
principal investigator · Paris HEGP

Oversight

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

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Studies of the drugs tested here: Encorafenib · Cetuximab

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