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Triple Negative Breast CancerPhase 1NCT04427293

Preoperative Lenvatinib Plus Pembrolizumab in Early-Stage Triple-Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC)

A Phase 1 study testing Lenvatinib and Pembrolizumab in people with Triple Negative Breast Cancer, run by University of Illinois Chicago at 1 site in United States.

Active, not recruiting

Under way, not looking for participants. Everyone needed has enrolled. The study is still running.

Official record
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Trial summary

This is single arm study of a window of opportunity in which participants with previously untreated triple negative breast cancers (TNBC) who are candidates for potentially curative surgery will receive lenvatinib 12 mg daily for 7 and pembrolizumab 200 mg IV on day 1 prior to surgery Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 years and older, women only
Conditions the study is for
Triple Negative Breast Cancer
What is being tested?
Lenvatinib and Pembrolizumab
Type of treatment
Injection or infusion
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
12 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
9 Jul 2020to Jul 2027
Phase
Phase 1
Are there results?
Not yet: the study is under way

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 years and older
  • Women only
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Age ≥ 18 years of age at time of consent
  • Histologically confirmed invasive breast carcinoma documented by core needle biopsy or incisional biopsy (excisional biopsy is not allowed). AJCC 8th edition clinical stage T1b-T3/N0-N3/M0 by physical exam or radiologic studies
  • Must be candidates for curative surgical resection
  • Have an FFPE diagnostic core biopsy specimen available that is determined by the study pathologist to be adequate for planned analyses
  • Definitive surgical excision of the primary breast tumor (either partial mastectomy or total mastectomy) and ipsilateral axillary lymph node sampling (sentinel lymph node biopsy or axillary dissection) is planned following completion of preoperative chemotherapy.
  • Estrogen Receptor (ER)- and Progesterone Receptor (PR)-negative as determined by immunohistochemistry (IHC), and Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (HER)2-negative (triple-negative) cancer of the breast
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  • Triple-negative tumors are defined as:
  • Less than or equal to 10% of tumor cells staining for ER and for PR by immunohistochemistry (IHC)
  • HER2-negative, as defined by ASCO/CAP guidelines55
  • Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0, 1 or 2 within 30 days prior to study registration
  • Demonstrate adequate organ function as defined in the table below; all screening labs to be obtained within 30 days prior to registration Hematological Leukocytes ≥2,500/mm3 Platelet count ≥ 100,000/mm3 Absolute Neutrophil Count (ANC) ≥ 1,500/mm3 Hemoglobin (Hgb) ≥ 9.0 g/dL Renal Creatinine/Calculated creatinine clearance (CrCl) Cr < 1.5 x upper limit of normal (ULN) or CrCl ≥ 50 mL/min using the Cockcroft-Gault formula Hepatic Bilirubin Bilirubin ≤ 1.5 × ULN. Subjects with Gilbert's syndrome may have a bilirubin > 1.5 × ULN, if no evidence of biliary obstruction exists Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) ≤ 2.5 × ULN Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) ≤ 2.5 × ULN
  • No evidence of distant metastases (M0 as per AJCC staging guidelines)
  • Provided written informed consent and HIPAA authorization for release of personal health information, approved by an Institutional Review Board (IRB)
  • NOTE: HIPAA authorization may be included in the informed consent or obtained separately
  • Women of childbearing potential (WOCP) must not be pregnant or breast-feeding. A negative serum or urine pregnancy test is required within 14 days of study registration. If the urine test cannot be confirmed as negative, a serum pregnancy test will be required
  • Women of childbearing potential (WOCP) must be willing to use two effective methods of birth control such as an oral, implantable, injectable, or transdermal hormonal contraceptive, an intrauterine device (IUD), use of a double barrier method (condoms, sponge, diaphragm, or vaginal ring with spermicidal jellies or cream), or total abstinence for the course of the study until 120 days after the last dose of study drug NOTE: Women are considered to be of childbearing potential unless they are postmenopausal (≥45 years of age and has not had menses for greater than 12 consecutive months or bilateral oophorectomy) or surgically sterile (bilateral tubal ligation or hysterectomy) or not heterosexually active for the duration of the study and at least 120 days after the last dose of study drug
  • As determined by the enrolling physician or protocol designee, ability of the subject to understand and comply with study procedures for the entire length of the study

Who cannot join

  • Active infection requiring systemic therapy
  • Pregnant or breastfeeding (NOTE: breast milk cannot be stored for future use while the mother is being treated on study)
  • Previous anti-cancer treatment (cytotoxic chemotherapy, immunotherapy, biologic therapy, radiotherapy directed towards the primary breast tumor and/or ipsilateral axillary lymph nodes or investigational agents) with therapeutic intent for the current breast cancer
  • Previous treatment with lenvatinib or any immune checkpoint inhibitor within the past 2 years
  • Treatment with any investigational drug within 14 days prior to registration or within 5 half-lives of the investigational product, whichever is longer
  • Major surgery within 14 days prior to registration or has not recovered from major side effects of a major surgery (tumor biopsy and placement of an indwelling venous access device are not considered major surgery)
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  • Any prior or concurrent malignancy whose natural history or treatment has the potential to interfere with the safety or efficacy assessment of this investigational regimen, as determined by the treating Medical Oncologist.
  • Known history of AIDS (HIV testing is not mandatory). HIV-positive individuals on active HARRT therapy with virologic suppression (defined as an HIV-1 RNA level below the lower limit of detection of the assay used) within 90 days of study enrollment and a CD4 cell count >500 cells/mm3 on the most recent determination are eligible for the study
  • . Subjects with any of the following conditions:
  • History of abdominal fistula, gastrointestinal perforation, or intra- abdominal abscess within 28 days prior to registration
  • History of cerebrovascular accident (CVA) or transient ischemic attack within 6 months prior to registration
  • History of acute coronary syndromes (including myocardial infarction, unstable angina, coronary artery bypass grafting, coronary angioplasty, or stenting) or symptomatic pericarditis within 6 months prior to registration
  • Symptomatic congestive heart failure (New York Heart Association III-IV) or documented current left ventricular (LV) systolic dysfunction with left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) <50% on most recent assessment of LV function
  • Clinically significant cardiac ventricular arrhythmias (e.g. sustained ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation) or high-grade AV block (e.g. bifascicular block, Mobitz type II and third-degree AV block) unless a pacemaker is in place
  • Any concurrent severe and/or uncontrolled medical condition that would, in the investigator's judgment, cause unacceptable safety risks, contraindicate subject participation in the clinical study or compromise compliance with the protocol
  • Any condition that, in the opinion of the investigator, might jeopardize the safety of the patient or interfere with protocol compliance
  • Any mental or medical condition that prevents the patient from giving informed consent or participating in the trial

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • University of Illinois

    Chicago, Illinois, 60612

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: BRE-03: Window of Opportunity Trial of Preoperative Lenvatinib Plus Pembrolizumab in Early-Stage Triple-Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC)

This is single arm study of a window of opportunity in which participants with previously untreated triple negative breast cancers (TNBC) who are candidates for potentially curative surgery will receive lenvatinib 12 mg daily for 7 and pembrolizumab 200 mg IV on day 1 prior to surgery

Read the detailed description

This is a single arm study of a window of opportunity study in which participants with previously untreated triple negative breast cancers (TNBC) who are candidates for potentially curative surgery will receive therapy prior to surgery, consisting of lenvatinib 12 mg daily for 7 days and pembrolizumab 200 mg IV on day 1. Subjects will either have curative surgery 7-10 days after last dose of lenvatinib, and post-operative adjuvant therapy as per institution guidelines or have a research core biopsy of the breast tumor 7-10 days after last dose of lenvatinib, and standard of care neoadjuvant chemotherapy +/_ immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy, then curative surgery, post-operative adjuvant therapy as per institution guidelines

Medical subject headings
Triple Negative Breast Neoplasms

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

Study groups in NCT04427293
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Open LabelExperimentalAll participants will receive lenvatinib 12mg daily for 7 days and pembrolizumab 200 mg IV on day 1 prior to surgery
Receives: Drug: Lenvatinib; Drug: Pembrolizumab

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Evaluate the effectiveness of preoperative anti-vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) therapy and immune checkpoint blockade on infiltration of CD8+ tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) (CD45RA-/CD8+/FoxP3-) in primary tumors from patients

    Measuring the presence of a T-cell inflamed TME, characterized by infiltration of CD8+ TILs

    Measured: 2 years

Secondary outcomes (2)
  1. Evaluate clinical response to preoperative anti-VEGFR therapy and immune checkpoint blockade based on pathologic complete response and residual tumor burden in subjects receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy and changes in the Ki-67 index in all patients.

    Reviewing pathology report

    Measured: At the point of surgery

  2. Evaluate treatment tolerability of preoperative anti-VEGFR therapy and immune checkpoint blockade assessed by failure to completed planned course of neoadjuvant chemo-immune therapy and surgery in patients with early-stage TNBC

    Assessing for adverse events (e.g., infections) using the NCI Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (NCI CTCAE) Version 5

    Measured: 30 days post treatment

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted11 Jun 2020
  2. Study start9 Jul 2020
  3. Primary completionJul 2027 (estimated)
  4. Study completionJul 2027 (estimated)

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 1
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
12 participants (estimated)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT04427293
Sponsor's protocol ID
2020-0232
Status last verified
Aug 2026
First submitted
8 Jun 2020
Last updated
28 Aug 2026
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
Yes
FDA-regulated device
No

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 1 study testing Lenvatinib and Pembrolizumab in people with Triple Negative Breast Cancer, run by University of Illinois Chicago at 1 site in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 17 inclusion and 17 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: under way, not looking for participants, as of the sponsor's last update on 28 Aug 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

What does this phase mean?

Phase 1 studies test a treatment in a small group of people for the first time or in a new way, mainly to check safety and find the right dose.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Evaluate the effectiveness of preoperative anti-vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) therapy and immune checkpoint blockade on infiltration of CD8+ tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) (CD45RA-/CD8+/FoxP3-) in primary tumors from patients (time frame: 2 years). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 28 Aug 2026.

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