Osteosarcoma is the most common primary bone cancer, predominantly affecting children and young adults during growth spurts. Intensive chemotherapy combined with limb-sparing surgery cures about 70% of patients with localized disease, but metastatic and relapsed osteosarcoma remains very difficult to treat.
What's actually going on in research
Immune checkpoint inhibitors and adoptive T-cell therapies are being tested for metastatic and relapsed osteosarcoma, where new systemic options are desperately needed. Antibody-drug conjugates targeting GD2, which is expressed on osteosarcoma cells, are entering clinical trials. Muramyl tripeptide (mifamurtide), which activates the immune system against bone cancer, is approved outside the US and being studied in combination regimens.
GD2-targeted therapy
GD2 is expressed on the surface of osteosarcoma cells; antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates, and CAR-T cells targeting GD2 are in trials for relapsed and metastatic disease.
Checkpoint immunotherapy
PD-1 and CTLA-4 inhibitors have limited single-agent activity in osteosarcoma but are being combined with anti-angiogenic drugs and other immunomodulators in trials.
Aerosol chemotherapy
Inhaled gemcitabine and other agents are being developed to target osteosarcoma lung metastases — the most common site of spread — while minimizing systemic toxicity.
What to know before you search
Eligibility depends on disease stage (localized vs. metastatic), prior chemotherapy regimens, and specific molecular features for targeted therapy trials.
What types of trials are currently open
- Treatment trials — Testing new chemotherapy combinations, immunotherapy, and targeted drugs for metastatic or relapsed osteosarcoma.
- GD2-targeted trials — Evaluating antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates, and CAR-T therapies against the GD2 surface antigen.
- Surgical trials — Comparing limb-sparing versus amputation and evaluating new reconstruction techniques.
- Immunotherapy trials — Testing mifamurtide, checkpoint inhibitors, and combination immune approaches.
- Lung metastasis trials — Evaluating surgical resection strategies and aerosol chemotherapy for pulmonary metastases.
Recently added Osteosarcoma trials
Tumor Neoantigen Vaccine SarVac Combined With Tumor Specific Lymphocyte Reinfusion in the Treatment of Advanced Sarcoma
The primary objective of this trial is to evaluate the safety and tolerability of the tumor neoantigen vaccine (SarcVac) in combination with a PD-1 antibody, with or without tumor-specific lymphocytes, in patients with advanced bone and soft tissue sarcoma who have failed first-line treatment. The secondary objectives are to assess the preliminary efficacy of SarcVac combined with a PD-1 antibody, with or without tumor-specific lymphocytes, in these patients and to evaluate whether the vaccine's efficacy demonstrates dose dependency.
Feasibility Study on the Effect of a Methionine-Reduced Diet on Serum Levels in Pts w/ Solid Tumors
This is a pilot clinical trial determining the effect of a Methionine-reduced diet on serum levels in subjects with solid tumors. These are subjects who will receive systemic standard of care cancer therapy.
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