The PICC-3 study is a multicentre, single-arm, phase II trial evaluating toripalimab plus celecoxib in patients with mismatch repair-deficient (dMMR) or microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H) locally advanced colorectal cancer. The trial uses a response-adapted treatment strategy, whereby patients with clinical complete response (cCR) after therapy may enter a non-operative management pathway, while patients without cCR proceed to surgery. Response assessment is based on imaging, endoscopy, biopsy evaluation, and ctDNA analysis.
Patients with dMMR/MSI-H locally advanced colorectal cancer have shown high sensitivity to neoadjuvant immune checkpoint inhibitor. Several phase II studies have demonstrated high rates of clinical complete response (cCR) and pathological complete response (pCR), supporting the feasibility and safety of immunotherapy in localized dMMR/MSI-H colorectal cancer. Radical surgery for locally advanced colorectal cancer is associated with substantial perioperative morbidity and long-term functional consequences. In particular, total mesorectal excision for rectal cancer may result in bowel, urinary, and sexual dysfunction, and some patients may require temporary or permanent stoma formation. Therefore, organ preservation and non-operative management have become important treatment goals for selected patients with colorectal cancer who achieve complete clinical response after neoadjuvant therapy. Previous studies have demonstrated the feasibility and safety of non-operative management after immune checkpoint inhibitor in patients with dMMR/MSI-H rectal cancer, while emerging evidence suggests that this strategy may also be feasible in selected patients with colon cancer following immunotherapy.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NA
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
105
Toripalimab is administered intravenously at 3 mg/kg over 30 minutes once every 2 weeks for a total of 12 doses. Celecoxib is administered orally at 200 mg twice daily for 6 months.
Patients achieving clinical complete response (cCR) according to comprehensive response assessment, including imaging, endoscopy, digital rectal examination (if applicable), and ctDNA evaluation, may undergo non-operative management.
Patients who do not achieve cCR will undergo curative-intent surgery.
The Sixth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University
Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
RECRUITINGEvent-free survival (EFS)
the time from the first dose of study treatment to the occurrence of one of the following events: locally progressive disease of the primary tumour precluding curative-intent surgery, R2 resection, local recurrence after R0 or R1 resection, unsalvageable local regrowth during non-operative management, distant metastasis, a second primary colorectal cancer, or death from any cause, whichever occurs first.
Time frame: 3 years
Pathological complete response (pCR) rate
the percentage of subjects with no residual viable tumor in the resected primary tumor specimen and all sampled regional lymph nodes after radical surgery (ypT0N0).
Time frame: 3 years
Clinical complete response (cCR) rate
the percentage of subjects achieving no evidence of residual tumour on comprehensive response assessment, including imaging, endoscopy with negative biopsy findings, digital rectal examination (if applicable), and ctDNA evaluation.
Time frame: 3 years
Complete response (CR) rate
the percentage of subjects achieving pathological complete response (pCR) after surgery or clinical complete response (cCR) with non-operative management.
Time frame: 3 years
Overall survival (OS)
the time from the first dose of study treatment to death from any cause.
Time frame: 5 years
Incidence of treatment-related adverse events
incidence and severity of treatment-related adverse events, graded according to CTCAE version 5.0.
Time frame: 3 years
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