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Platform Trial to Assess the Efficacy of Multiple Drugs in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)
NCT06008249 · Stichting TRICALS Foundation
In plain English
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Official title
A Multi-arm, Adaptive, Group-sequential Trial NETwork to Evaluate Drug Efficacy in Patients With Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)
About this study
This study uses an innovative multi-arm, adaptive trial design to investigate the efficacy of multiple treatments simultaneously. Currently one study-arm is active, investigating the efficacy and safety of lithium carbonate versus placebo in patients with ALS. Only patients with a specific UNC13A genotype (approximately 1 in 6 ALS patients) are eligible to participate.
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion Criteria:
1. ≥ 18 years at the time of screening.
2. Diagnosis of ALS according to the revised El Escorial criteria (possible, probable-laboratory supported, probable or definite).
3. Capable of providing informed consent and complying with trial procedures, including randomization to sub-studies.
4. TRICALS risk profile \> -6.0 and \< -2.0 \*\*
5. The use of riluzole will be permitted during the study. Subjects taking riluzole must be on a stable dose for at least 30 days prior to the baseline visit, or stopped taking riluzole at least 30 days prior to the baseline visit.
6. Women of childbearing potential\* must have a negative pregnancy test at baseline and be non-lactating.
7. Men must agree to practice contraception for the duration of the trial and for at least 3 months after last dose of study drug.
8. Men must not plan to father a child or to provide sperm for donation for the duration of the trial and 3 months after the last dose of study drug.
9. Women must not be able to become pregnant (e.g. post-menopausal\*\*\*, surgically sterile or using effective birth control methods) for the duration of the study. Effective contraceptives are defined as having a failure rate of less than 1% per year when used consistently and correctly and, when applicable, in accordance with the product label, including: abstinence, hormonal contraception, intrauterine device in place for ≥ 3 months Appendix 1). Women of childbearing potential must have a negative pregnancy test at baseline, and be non-lactating. Women who are pregnant or are actively seeking to become pregnant, and women of reproductive potential who are not using effective contraceptives are excluded.
Exclusion Criteria:
1. Laboratory Criteria at baseline:
* ALT (alanine transaminase) ≥ 5 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
* AST (aspartate aminotransferase) ≥ 3 times ULN
* Bilirubin ≥ 1.5 times ULN
* Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) \< 50 mL / min / 1.73 m2 based on Cystatin C, if not available eGFR can also be calculated based on creatinine clearance.
* Platelet concentration of \< 100 x109 per L
* Absolute neutrophil count of \< 1x109 per L
* Haemoglobin \< 100 g/L (\<6.2 mmol/L)
* Amylase \& lipase ≥ 2 times ULN (suspected pancreatitis)
* Lactate ≥ 2 times ULN (suspected lactate acidosis)
2. Moderate to severe hepatic impairment according to Child-Pugh classification (Class B or higher; score ≥ 7). Child-Pugh classification is based on bilirubin, albumin, International Normalized Ratio (INR) and presence of encephalopathy or ascites.
3. Participation in any other investigational drug trial or using investigational drug (within 30 days prior to screening).
4. Hypothyroidism unresponsive to thyroid hormone supplementation.
5. Subjects using non-invasive ventilation (NIV, ≥22 h per day) or having a tracheostomy.
6. Subjects taking edaravone within 30 days prior to screening. Edaravone is approved by the FDA, but remains an investigational product in Europe and Australia.
7. Clinically significant history of unstable or severe cardiac (e.g. congestive heart failure, coronary insufficiency and arrhythmias), oncological, hepatic or renal disease, neuromuscular diseases, significant pulmonary disorder or other medically significant illness.
8. Drug or alcohol abuse.
9. Unstable psychiatric illness defined as psychosis or untreated major depression within 90 days of the screening visit. This exclusion criterion is based on a prior psychiatric diagnosis that is unstable as determined by the subject's treating Psychiatrist.
10. Presence of frontotemporal dementia which prevents informed consent.
Lithium carbonate study-specific exclusion criteria:
1. Patients heterozygous or homozygous for the A-allele of rs12608932 (UNC13A)
2. Known allergy or hypersensitivity to lithium, or its excipients, or to the components of the placebo.
3. Brain injury with posttraumatic epilepsy or neurologic deficit, excluding a concussion in the medical history. Brain infarction is an exclusion criterion, a transient ischemic attack is not.
4. Addison disease.
5. Patients with the following co-medication: antipsychotics, digoxin and calcium antagonists, carbamazepine, methyldopa, verapamil and diltiazem.
6. Brugada Syndrome or family history of Brugada Syndrome.
7. Plasma sodium \<120 mmol/L
Study design
Enrollment target: 171 participants
Allocation: randomized
Masking: double
Age groups: adult, older_adult
Timeline
Starts: 2021-08-09
Estimated completion: 2026-06
Last updated: 2025-06-11
Interventions
Drug: Lithium Carbonate 400 MG
Primary outcomes
- • Overall survival, defined as time to death from any cause or respiratory insufficiency (DRI; defined as tracheostomy or the use of non-invasive ventilation for ≥22 h per day for ≥10 consecutive days) (endpoint or 24 months)
Sponsor
Stichting TRICALS Foundation · other
With: Fight MND, Research Foundation Flanders, MNDA, Thierry Latran Foundation, Ulla-Carin Lindquist Foundation, Luzon Foundation, Alan Davidson Foundation, My name'5 Doddie Foundation, Stichting ALS Nederland
Contacts & investigators
ContactRoel Vink, PhD · contact · magnet@tricals.org · +31 6 50177777
ContactLeonard van den Berg, MD · contact · L.H.vandenBerg@umcutrecht.nl · 0887557939
InvestigatorLeonard Van den Berg, MD · study_chair, TRICALS Foundation
All locations (13)
Flinders Medical CentreNot Yet Recruiting
Adelaide, Australia
Royal Brisbane and Women's HospitalNot Yet Recruiting
Brisbane, Australia
Calvary Health Care BethlehemNot Yet Recruiting
Parkdale, Australia
Perron InstituteNot Yet Recruiting
Perth, Australia
The University of Sydney (Royal prince Alfred hospital)Recruiting
Sydney, Australia
Concord hospital SydneyNot Yet Recruiting
Sydney, Australia
University Hospital LeuvenRecruiting
Leuven, Belgium
University Medical Center UtrechtRecruiting
Utrecht, Utrecht, Netherlands
Bellvitge University HospitalRecruiting
Barcelona, Spain
Karolinska University HospitalRecruiting
Stockholm, Sweden
King's College HospitalRecruiting
London, United Kingdom
University College London Hospital NHSNot Yet Recruiting
London, United Kingdom
University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS TrustNot Yet Recruiting
Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom