An observational study in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma (NPC), sponsored by Zhongshan People's Hospital, Guangdong, China. Not yet recruiting at 2 sites in China. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-11-05.
Sponsored by Zhongshan People's Hospital, Guangdong, China · Observational
An observational study combines retrospective and prospective cohorts to develop, validate, and compare models based on Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-related blood biomarkers alone, nasopharyngeal endoscopic scores alone, and their combination to support biopsy decisions for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Existing clinical data will be analyzed retrospectively for model development and internal validation. Data from participants undergoing nasopharyngeal endoscopy and clinically indicated nasopharyngeal biopsy at participating centers will be collected prospectively for external validation. The study will assess the models' diagnostic performance and potential value in identifying individuals who may benefit from biopsy and reducing unnecessary biopsies. Clinical decisions will follow routine practice.
The study includes a retrospective cohort for model development and internal validation and a prospective cohort for external validation at participating centers. Models based on EBV-related blood biomarkers alone, nasopharyngeal endoscopic scores alone, and their combination will be developed, validated, and compared.
683 studies on the registry are indexed under Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma; 270 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 1,500 is above the median of 300 across 118 observational studies indexed under Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.
Browse Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma studies →Zhongshan People's Hospital, Guangdong, China is the lead sponsor of 11 studies on the registry; 8 are open to participants now.
Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.
The study population comprises individuals undergoing nasopharyngeal endoscopy and clinically indicated nasopharyngeal biopsy for NPC risk assessment or suspected NPC at participating hospitals. The retrospective cohort will use existing clinical records, while the prospective cohort will enroll eligible individuals consecutively.
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.
Exclusion Criteria:
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
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.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
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.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Participants selected from existing clinical records who underwent nasopharyngeal endoscopy and clinically indicated nasopharyngeal biopsy for NPC risk assessment or suspected NPC. EBV-related blood biomarker results, nasopharyngeal endoscopic scores, and pathological diagnoses will be analyzed for model development.
Diagnostic Test: Assessment of EBV-related blood biomarkers and nasopharyngeal endoscopic scores
Participants from the retrospective study population who are not included in the training cohort. Their EBV-related blood biomarker results, nasopharyngeal endoscopic scores, and pathological diagnoses will be used for internal validation of the developed models.
Diagnostic Test: Assessment of EBV-related blood biomarkers and nasopharyngeal endoscopic scores
Participants undergoing nasopharyngeal endoscopy and clinically indicated nasopharyngeal biopsy at participating centers will be enrolled prospectively. EBV-related blood biomarker results, nasopharyngeal endoscopic scores, and pathological diagnoses from clinically indicated biopsies will be collected for external validation of the developed models. Clinical decisions will follow routine practice.
Diagnostic Test: Assessment of EBV-related blood biomarkers and nasopharyngeal endoscopic scores
EBV-related blood biomarkers, including P85-Ab, EBNA1-IgA, and VCA-IgA, among others, will be evaluated together with nasopharyngeal endoscopic scores to support biopsy decisions for nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Biopsy and treatment decisions will follow routine clinical practice.
Sensitivity of serological, endoscopic, and combined models at prespecified risk thresholds
Sensitivity and corresponding 95% confidence intervals will be assessed and compared across models based on EBV-related blood biomarkers alone, nasopharyngeal endoscopic scores alone, and their combination at prespecified risk thresholds, separately in the internal validation cohort and the prospective external validation cohort, using nasopharyngeal biopsy histopathology as the reference standard.
Time frame: Baseline
Specificity of serological, endoscopic, and combined models at prespecified risk thresholds
Specificity and corresponding 95% confidence intervals will be assessed and compared across models based on EBV-related blood biomarkers alone, nasopharyngeal endoscopic scores alone, and their combination at prespecified risk thresholds, separately in the internal validation cohort and the prospective external validation cohort, using nasopharyngeal biopsy histopathology as the reference standard.
Time frame: Baseline
Area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of serological, endoscopic, and combined models
AUCs and corresponding 95% confidence intervals will be assessed and compared across models based on EBV-related blood biomarkers alone, nasopharyngeal endoscopic scores alone, and their combination, separately in the internal validation cohort and the prospective external validation cohort, using nasopharyngeal biopsy histopathology as the reference standard.
Time frame: Baseline
Calibration intercept of serological, endoscopic, and combined models
The calibration intercept will be calculated for each model using predicted probabilities and histopathological diagnoses, separately in the internal validation cohort and the prospective external validation cohort. An intercept of 0 indicates ideal calibration in this respect.
Time frame: Baseline
Calibration slope of serological, endoscopic, and combined models
The calibration slope will be calculated for each model using predicted probabilities and histopathological diagnoses, separately in the internal validation cohort and the prospective external validation cohort. A slope of 1 indicates ideal calibration in this respect.
Time frame: Baseline
Brier score of serological, endoscopic, and combined models
The Brier score will be calculated for each model as the mean squared difference between predicted probabilities and histopathological outcomes, coded as 1 for nasopharyngeal carcinoma and 0 otherwise, separately in the internal validation cohort and the prospective external validation cohort. Scores range from 0 to 1, with lower scores indicating better overall predictive accuracy.
Time frame: Baseline
Positive predictive value of serological, endoscopic, and combined models at prespecified risk thresholds
Positive predictive values and corresponding 95% confidence intervals will be calculated for each model at prespecified risk thresholds, separately in the internal validation cohort and the prospective external validation cohort, using nasopharyngeal biopsy histopathology as the reference standard.
Time frame: Baseline
Negative predictive value of serological, endoscopic, and combined models at prespecified risk thresholds
Negative predictive values and corresponding 95% confidence intervals will be calculated for each model at prespecified risk thresholds, separately in the internal validation cohort and the prospective external validation cohort, using nasopharyngeal biopsy histopathology as the reference standard.
Time frame: Baseline
Net benefit of model-based biopsy strategies
Decision curve analysis will be used to assess and compare the net benefit of biopsy strategies based on serological, endoscopic, and combined models with biopsy-all and biopsy-none strategies across risk thresholds, separately in the internal validation cohort and the prospective external validation cohort, using nasopharyngeal biopsy histopathology as the reference standard.
Time frame: Baseline
Potential percentage of biopsies avoided using model-based strategies at prespecified risk thresholds
For each serological, endoscopic, and combined model, the potential percentage of biopsies avoided will be calculated as the percentage of all evaluated participants undergoing biopsy whose predicted risk is below the prespecified threshold. This represents the potential reduction in biopsies relative to a biopsy-all strategy and will be assessed separately in the internal validation cohort and the prospective external validation cohort.
Time frame: Baseline
Plan to share: Undecided
No publications or documents are linked to this record.
Start is estimated for Nov 2026; primary completion for Jun 2028, 19 months later.
Of 52 observational studies under Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma, half reached primary completion within 55 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 36 and three quarters within 155. This study's planned 19 months is below that.
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
From the registry record's own update history. This site started tracking changes on Sep 25, 2026; for anything earlier, see the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
This study is not yet recruiting, as verified in Sep 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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Zhongshan People's Hospital, Guangdong, China