A Study of Tucatinib Given Before Surgery to People With HER2+ Cancers That Have Spread to the Brain

Last updated: February 12, 2026
Sponsor: Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Overall Status: Active - Not Recruiting

Phase

2

Condition

Metastatic Cancer

Breast Cancer

Treatment

Tucatinib

Clinical Study ID

NCT05892068
22-168
  • Ages > 18
  • Female

Study Summary

The purpose of this study to see how the brain absorbs, distributes, and gets rid of tucatinib in people who have HER2+ cancers (breast cancer, NSCLC, CRC, or GEC) that have spread to the brain, and to learn more about how cancer cells develop resistance to treatment. The researchers will do research tests to look for genetic differences between HER2+ breast cancer that has spread to the brain and progressed during treatment with tucatinib and cancers that are being treated with tucatinib for the first time.

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age ≥18 years with no impairment in decision making capacity

  • Patients with HER2 overexpressed/amplified/mutant metastaticbreast/lung/esophagogastric/colorectal cancer (IHC, fluorescent in situ hybridationor sequencing-confirmed primary, brain, or other metastatic site) and one or morebrain tumor(s) planned for neurosurgical resection. Other untreated brainmetastases, and prior radiation (whole brain radiation therapy and/or stereotacticradiosurgery) to the index site are allowed

  • Patients with concomitant leptomeningeal disease are eligible provided they haveparenchymal brain metastases requiring resection.

  • Life expectancy of >12 weeks.

  • ECOG Performance Status (PS) of 0 to 2

  • Prior treatments:

  • Cohort A: Clinical and or radiological CNS parenchymal progression on tucatinibas most recent line of treatment (tucatinib-resistant) in patients with HER2overexpressed/amplified breast cancer

  • Clinical and or radiological CNS parenchymal progression with no priortucatinib (tucatinib naïve) in patients with HER2 overexpressed/amplifiedbreast cancer

  • Clinical and or radiological CNS parenchymal progression in patients withHER2+/mutant lung/esophagogastric/colorectal cancer and HER2 mutant breastcancer

ALL PATIENTS:

  • Prior conventional dose lapatinib and neratinib are allowed in any cohort if > 6months prior

  • No limit on prior lines of systemic therapy

  • Adequate bone marrow, liver, renal function, and coagulation parameters (obtained ≤ 7 days prior to the first day of study treatment:

  1. Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) ≥1.0 × 103μL, Platelet count ≥75 × 103 /μL,Hemoglobin ≥ 8.0 g/dL

  2. Total bilirubin ≤1.5 × upper limit of normal (ULN). Subjects with known historyof Gilbert's Syndrome and normal direct bilirubin, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) are eligible: AST and ALT ≤2.5 × ULN (≤5 × ULN if liver metastases are present)

  3. Calculated creatinine clearance ≥50 mL/min using the CKD-EPI (2021) (in CohortA, in patients with elevated serum creatinine, eGFR can be calculated usingcystatin C to confirm eligibility)

  4. International normalized ratio (INR) and activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) ≤1.5 × ULN unless on medication known to alter INR and/or aPTT

  • Women of childbearing potential must have a negative serum pregnancy test performedwithin 7 days prior to enrollment and must agree to use adequate contraception priorto enrollment and for the duration of study participation

  • Patients must be able to swallow and retain oral medication

Exclusion

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Contraindications or history of allergic reaction to tucatinib or any of itsexcipients

  • Significant medical co-morbidities as per investigator evaluation

  • Inability to comply with protocol and /or not willing or not available for follow-upassessments or any condition which in the investigator's opinion makes the patientunsuitable for the study participation

  • Have used a strong or moderate CYP2C8 inhibitor within 5 half-lives of the inhibitoror have used a strong or moderate CYP2C8 or CYP3A4 inducer within 2 weeks prior tofirst dose of study treatment (Appendix E)

  • Receiving concomitant CYP3A or P-gp substrates where minimal concentration changesmay lead to serious or life-threatening toxicities

  • Concurrent pregnancy

Study Design

Total Participants: 9
Treatment Group(s): 1
Primary Treatment: Tucatinib
Phase: 2
Study Start date:
May 09, 2023
Estimated Completion Date:
May 09, 2028

Study Description

All patients will receive tucatinib per-protocol at standard dose of 300 mg orally twice daily on days - 4, -3, -2, -1 and day 0 (in AM). The post-surgery treatment (systemic and/or local) will be decided according to treating physician discretion and is not a study intervention. Tissue samples of brain metastases along with blood/plasma and CSF samples will be analyzed to evaluate brain tumor penetration of tucatinib as well as biologic response to tucatinib in patients with brain metastases from HER2+/mutant breast cancer who are undergoing clinically indicated brain surgery. Patients may continue tucatinib post-operatively at the discretion of the treating oncologist with monitoring as per clinical routine; this is not a study intervention for Cohort A and Cohort B. Patients on Cohort C may receive tucatinib post-operatively through the study according to physician descretion.

Connect with a study center

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (Limited Protocol Activities)

    Basking Ridge, New Jersey 07920
    United States

    Site Not Available

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Monmouth (Limited Protocol Activities)

    Middletown, New Jersey 07748
    United States

    Site Not Available

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Bergen (Limited Protocol Activities)

    Montvale, New Jersey 07645
    United States

    Site Not Available

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (Limited Protocol Activities)

    Basking Ridge 5095409, New Jersey 5101760 07920
    United States

    Site Not Available

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Monmouth (Limited Protocol Activities)

    Middletown 5101170, New Jersey 5101760 07748
    United States

    Site Not Available

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Bergen (Limited Protocol Activities)

    Montvale 5101361, New Jersey 5101760 07645
    United States

    Site Not Available

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Suffolk - Commack (Limited Protocol Activities)

    Commack, New York 11725
    United States

    Site Not Available

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Westchester (Limited Protocol Activities)

    Harrison, New York 10604
    United States

    Site Not Available

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

    New York, New York 10065
    United States

    Site Not Available

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Nassau (Limited Protocol Activities)

    Uniondale, New York 11553
    United States

    Site Not Available

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Suffolk - Commack (Limited Protocol Activities)

    Commack 5113412, New York 5128638 11725
    United States

    Site Not Available

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Westchester (Limited Protocol Activities)

    Harrison 5120095, New York 5128638 10604
    United States

    Site Not Available

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

    New York 5128581, New York 5128638 10065
    United States

    Site Not Available

  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Nassau (Limited Protocol Activities)

    Uniondale 5141927, New York 5128638 11553
    United States

    Site Not Available

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