Recruiting
Phase 1
Phase 2

Abemaciclib

Sponsor:

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Code:

NCT04941274

Conditions

Kaposi Sarcoma

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18 - 70+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Interventions

Abemaciclib

Study Details

Brief summary:

Background:

Kaposi Sarcoma (KS) is common in people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) but can also occur in people who do not have HIV. KS tumors usually involve the skin, but may also involve lymph nodes, lungs, bone, and gastrointestinal tract. Researchers want to see if a drug that is currently used to treat a type of breast cancer can help.

Objective:

To find a safe dose of abemaciclib to treat KS and to see if it can shrink lesions or tumors.

Eligibility:

People ages 18 and older with KS.

Design:

Participants will be screened with some or all of the following:

Medical history

Physical exam

Blood and urine tests

Chest x-ray and/or computed tomography scans

Lung or gastrointestinal tract exam with an endoscope (a flexible instrument to examine the interior of the organ)

Medicine review

Heart function tests

KS lesion assessment

Skin sample from a KS lesion

Treatment will be given in 28-day cycles. Participants will take the study drug tablets by mouth everyday. They will keep a medicine diary. They will get the study drug until their cancer gets worse or they have unacceptable side effects. Participants who stopped taking abemaciclib because it was no longer providing additional benefit may be able to restart abemaciclib again.

Participants will have a study visit at the beginning of each cycle. At these visits, they will repeat some screening tests. They may have medical photographs taken of body surfaces. They may complete questionnaires about their quality of life. They may give skin and saliva samples. For skin samples, an area of skin will be numbed. A small circle of skin over an area affected by KS will be removed.

Participants will have follow-up visits for up to 2 years after treatment ends.

Conditions

Kaposi Sarcoma

Study ID

NCT04941274

Start date

Sep 29, 2021

Status verified date

Aug 21, 2026

Completion date

Jun 1, 2028

Anticipated

Primary completion date

Mar 1, 2028

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18 - 70+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

  • INCLUSION CRITERIA:
  • Participants must have Kaposi sarcoma confirmed by the Laboratory of Pathology, NCI
  • Measurable disease as follows:

  • All participants in Groups 1, 2a, or 2b or 4 should have at least five measurable cutaneous KS lesions per AIDS Clinical Trials Group Oncology Committee (ACTG) criteria with no previous local radiation, surgical or intralesional cytotoxic therapy that would prevent response assessment for that lesion and/or evaluable disease per RECIST criteria.
  • Measurable disease by the criteria proposed by the AIDS Clinical Trials Group Oncology Committee.
  • Participants in Group 3 must have Stage T1 KS with at least five measurable cutaneous KS lesions per ACTG criteria and/or evaluable disease per RECIST criteria.
  • Participants may be HIV positive or negative.
  • Participants must be able to swallow oral medications
  • For all groups, participants must have adequate organ and marrow function as defined below:

  • Absolute neutrophil count >1,000/mcL
  • Platelets >75,000/mcL
  • Hemoglobin >= 8gm/dL
  • Total bilirubin <= 1.5 upper limit of normal unless the participant is receiving a protease inhibitor known to be associated with increased bilirubin (e.g. atazanavir), in which case total bilirubin <= 7.5 mg/dL with direct fraction <= 0.7
  • AST/ALT <3 X institutional upper limit of normal
  • Creatinine within normal institutional limits OR
  • Creatinine clearance >45 mL/min/1.73 m\^2 as estimated by either Cockroft-Gault or 24-hour urine collection for participants with creatinine levels above institutional normal
  • Cardiac ejection fraction > 45% by echocardiogram
  • Prior treatment as follows:

  • Phase I: Participants must have received at least 1 prior line of systemic therapy for KS with either plateau in response, progressive disease, or inadequate response to treatment. Previous local therapy or radiation is not considered systemic therapy.
  • Phase II:

  • Group 2a: Individuals must have received at least 1 prior line of systemic therapy for KS with either plateau in response, relapsed disease, progressive disease, or inadequate response to treatment
  • Group 2b: Individuals have not received prior systemic therapy for KS. Previous local therapy or radiation is not considered systemic therapy.
  • Group 3: Evidence of Stage T1 KS with either a) edema or ulcerated KS and/or b) extensive oral KS and/or c) visceral KS involvement
  • Group 4: Participants that received prior treatment with abemaciclib with evidence of response (at least a partial response per ACTG criteria and/or RECIST) to abemaciclib.
  • Participants in Cohort 4 must:

  • have been previously enrolled in Cohorts 1-3
  • have at least prior documentation of PR in prior cohort
  • not have come off treatment for any >Grade 3 abemaciclib-related AE.
  • Age >18 years
  • Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status (PS) <= 2 (Karnofsky >= 60%.
  • Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individuals on effective anti-retroviral therapy are eligible for this trial.
  • Willingness to adhere to antiretroviral therapy (ART)
  • All participants must have received ART for 8 weeks prior to enrollment, with no evidence of KS improvement over the most recent 4 weeks
  • For participants with evidence of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, the HBV VL must be undetectable on suppressive therapy, if indicated.
  • Participants with a history of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection must have been treated and cured. Participants with HCV infection who are currently on treatment are eligible if they have an undetectable HCV VL.
  • No uncontrolled severe concurrent bacterial, viral, or fungal infections.
  • Participants with known history or current symptoms of cardiac disease, or history of treatment with cardiotoxic agents, should have a clinical risk assessment of cardiac function using the New York Heart Association Functional Classification. To be eligible for this trial, participants should be class 2B or better.
  • Contraception requirements as follows:

  • Participants of child-bearing potential (IOCBP) must agree to use a highly effective method of contraception (e.g., intrauterine device \[IUD\], hormonal, surgical sterilization, abstinence) prior to study entry, for the duration of study participation, and for up to 4 months after completion of abemaciclib administration
  • Participants able to father a child must with partners of childbearing potential agree to use an effective method of contraception (barrier, surgical sterilization, abstinence) for the duration of the study treatment for up to 4 months after completion of abemaciclib

administration. Individuals with partners of childbearing potential should ask their partners to be on an effective birth control (hormonal, IUD, surgical sterilization).

  • Because there is an unknown but potential risk for adverse events in nursing infants secondary to treatment of the nursing person with abemaciclib, nursing should be discontinued if the nursing person is treated with abemaciclib.
  • Ability to understand and the willingness to sign a written informed consent document.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Participants who have had chemotherapy or immunotherapy within 3 weeks prior to entering the study.
  • Participants who received radiotherapy must have completed and fully recovered from the acute effects of radiotherapy. A washout period of at least 14 days is required between end of radiotherapy and enrollment.
  • Participants who have not recovered from adverse events due to prior anti-cancer therapy (i.e., have residual toxicities > Grade 1) with the exception of alopecia or neuropathy.
  • Participants who are receiving any other investigational agents.
  • History of severe allergic reactions attributed to compounds of similar chemical or biologic composition to CDK inhibitor.
  • Participants receiving any ART or other medications that are strong/moderate inhibitors of CYP3A4 must have dose reductions per Strong/Moderate CYP3A4 inhibitors.
  • Serious and/or uncontrolled severe intercurrent illness that in the judgement of the investigator would preclude participation in the study.
  • No active KSHV-associated multicentric Castleman disease, KSHV-associated inflammatory cytokine syndrome or primary effusion lymphoma.
  • Psychiatric illness/social situations that would limit adherence with study requirements.
  • Pregnancy
  • Prior or concurrent malignancy whose natural history or treatment does not have the potential to interfere with the safety or efficacy assessment of the regimen are eligible for this trial
  • Participants with interstitial lung disease

Study Design

Enrollment

111 participants

Anticipated

Allocation

Non randomized

Intervention Model

Sequential

Primary purpose

Treatment

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

experimental: 1/Dose Determination/De-Escalation

Abemaciclib (de-escalating dose)

experimental: 2/Dose Expansion: Group 2a

Abemaciclib (at optimal dose determined in dose escalation portion of the study) for up to 15 participants previously treated with at least 1 line of systemic therapy.

experimental: 3/Dose Expansion: Group 2b

Abemaciclib (at optimal dose determined in dose escalation portion of the study) for up to 10 previously untreated participants.

experimental: 4/Dose Expansion: Group 3

Abemaciclib (at optimal dose determined in dose escalation portion of the study or adjusted for CYP3A4 inhibitor use) for up to 23 participants with Stage T1 KS

experimental: 5/Re-treatment

Abemaciclib at the last safe and active dose or adjusted for CYP3A4 inhibitor use

Interventions

Abemaciclib

An initial dose of 200 mg twice daily and at an MTD dose will be administered orally every day of each 28-day cycle.

Primary outcome measure

  • safety and tolerability of abemaciclib [ Time Frame: 28 days ]
  • overall response rate [ Time Frame: every 3 cycles until completion of therapy, then every 3 months for 6 months, then every 6 months for 2 years, then annually for 2 years ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Locations

National Institutes of Health Clinical Center

Recruiting

Bethesda, Maryland, United States, 20892

Contacts

For more information at the NIH Clinical Center contact National Cancer Institute Referral Office

888-624-1937

More Information

Sponsor

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Last update posted

Aug 25, 2026

Last verified

Aug 21, 2026

Keywords

  • Angiogenesis
  • AIDS
  • cyclin-dependent kinase
  • KSHV
  • Cell Cycle

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-09-09. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by National Cancer Institute (NCI) on 2026-08-25.