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Circadian Rhythm Impact on TNBC Response to Neoadjuvant Immunotherapy

Circadian Rhythm Impact on Triple Negative Breast Cancer Response to Neoadjuvant Immunotherapy - a Feasibility Randomized Trial

Status
Recruiting
Phases
Phase 1Phase 2
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT06880029
Acronym
CIRCADIAN
Enrollment
20
Registered
2025-03-17
Start date
2024-09-01
Completion date
2025-09-01
Last updated
2025-03-19

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC)

Keywords

TNBC, Immunotherapy, Circadian rhythm

Brief summary

CIRCADIAN is a prospective randomized clinical trial designed to evaluate the impact of pembrolizumab infusions' time-of-day on pathological complete response (pCR) rate among TNBC patients undergoing neoadjuvant treatment.

Detailed description

Patients will be randomized 1:1 to receive all neoadjuvant pembrolizumab cycles (400 mg every 6 weeks) before versus after noon. Subjects will be stratified based on clinical stage at diagnosis (St. II vs III). Primary outcome will be pCR rate. As a secondary outcome, we will assess for treatment related toxicity. For planned exploratory circadian rhythm evaluation, daily body temperature and salivary cortisol variation will be measured before each ICI infusion and the Munich Chronotype Questionnaire (MCTQ) will be applied. To assess for emotional stress, physical exercise habits, stimulating substances use and light exposure, patients will also be subjected to the Distress Thermometer and a lifestyle questionnaire. For planned exploratory biomarker research, tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) analysis will be performed on the initial diagnostic biopsy and after surgery, on residual tumor (in patients not achieving pCR). Cytokine quantification and bulk RNA sequencing plus flow cytometry studies for immune populations profiling will be performed on peripheral blood, at baseline and before surgery, to check for potential biomarkers of circadian modulation.

Interventions

OTHERMorning pembrolizumab infusions

Patients will be randomized 1:1 to receive all three neoadjuvant pembrolizumab cycles in the morning (before noon) or in the afternoon (after noon).

Sponsors

Centro Hospitalar de Vila Nova de Gaia/Espinho, E.P.E.
Lead SponsorOTHER_GOV

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
FEMALE
Age
18 Years to 75 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Female sex * Age 18 - 75 years old * Diagnosed with Stage II or III TNBC and candidates for neoadjuvant treatment with ChT+pembrolizumab after multidisciplinary group discussion.

Exclusion criteria

* Patients unable to understand or consent to the study; * Patients not completing ≥2 cycles of planned neoadjuvant pembrolizumab cycles or ≥50% of planned neoadjuvant ChT cycles; * Patients under daily ≥10 mg of prednisolone or equivalent

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Pathological complete response rateAt the time of definitive surgery.Defined as ypT0/Tis ypN0, assessed by the local pathologist.

Countries

Portugal

Contacts

Primary ContactAlexandra P. Guedes, Medical Oncologist M.D.
alexandra95dg@gmail.com+351968957977

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026