Toripalimab in Combination With Standard Treatment for Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Positive Throat Cancer

NCT07290621 | Recruiting Phase 2 FDA Drug

• 1 other identifier: IRB25-1616
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 30
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

This is a single-center phase 2 study of to test how well the combination of toripalimab with chemotherapy followed by TORS or risk and response stratified de-escalated (chemo)radiotherapy works in patients with in HPV16+ locoregionally advanced oropharyngeal cancer (OPC).

Conditions

Oropharyngeal Cancer

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Deep Response Rate (DRR) with toripalimab + chemotherapy

  The proportion of patients who attain a deep response following neoadjuvant toriaplimab + chemotherapy. DDR is defined as tumor shrinkage by 50% or more.

  After treatment completion (about 3 months)

Secondary Outcomes (6)

• Side effects of toripalimab + chemotherapy

  After treatment completion (about 3 months)

• Progression Free Survival

  5 years after treatment completion

• Overall Survival

  5 years after treatment completion

• Locoregional Control

  5 years after treatment completion

• Distant Control

  5 years after treatment completion

Study Arms (1)

Toripalimab and Chemotherapy Treatment

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants will receive toripalimab with neoadjuvant chemotherapy. After completion of the study treatment all patients will proceed with risk and response stratified locoregional therapy.

Drug: Toripalimab; Drug: Carboplatin; Drug: Paclitaxel

Interventions

Carboplatin DRUG

Carboplatin will be given by Intravenous (IV) infusion once on Day 1 of each treatment cycle.

Toripalimab and Chemotherapy Treatment

Paclitaxel DRUG

Paclitaxel will be given by Intravenous (IV) infusion once weekly for 9 weeks (except for Day 22 of cycle 1).

Toripalimab and Chemotherapy Treatment

Toripalimab DRUG

Toripalimab will be given by Intravenous (IV) infusion once on Day 1 of each treatment cycle. Up to 3 cycles of treatment will be given. The first treatment cycle will last 28 days (4 weeks). Cycles 2 and 3 will last 21 days (3 weeks).

Also known as: LOQTORZI

Toripalimab and Chemotherapy Treatment

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Subjects must have pathologically confirmed HPV16-positive head and neck squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx. Confirmed HPV-positive disease of other subsites are uncommon but also eligible.
• HPV16 subtype demonstrated based on the following guidelines:
• p16 IHC positivity is sufficient to enroll and initiate treatment (p16 IHC interpretation to follow guidelines by Jordan and Lingen et al72).
• HPV PCR must demonstrate HPV16 subtype.
• Following p16 IHC positivity, HPV16 is to be demonstrated using HPV PCR which is anticipated to result prior to cycle 1 day 15.
• Patients must be at least 18 years of age.
• Subjects with AJCC (8th edition, 2018) N1 (if solitary lymph node must be \>=3cm), N2-N3 nodal disease or T3-T4 primary tumor (with any N).
• Measurable disease (either primary site and/or nodal disease) by RECIST 1.1 criteria.
• No previous radiation or chemotherapy for a head and neck cancer.
• No complete surgical resection for a head and neck cancer within 8 weeks of enrollment (although lymph node biopsy including excision of an individual node with presence of residual nodal disease, or surgical biopsy/excision of the tumor with residual measurable disease is acceptable.) No surgical procedures or biopsies will occur after baseline scans are performed and measurable lesions are identified.
• ECOG performance status 0-1
• Normal Organ Function per protocol criteria
• Patients must be considered to be a candidate to receive cisplatin by the treating physician.
• Patients must sign a study-specific informed consent form prior to study entry. Patients should have the ability to understand and the willingness to sign a written informed consent document.
• Women of childbearing potential must have a negative serum or urine pregnancy test (minimum sensitivity 25 IU/L or equivalent units of HCG) within 24 hours prior to the start of study drug.

You may not qualify if:

• Unequivocal demonstration of distant metastatic disease (M1 disease).
• Non-HPV16 subtype.
• Unidentifiable primary site.
• Intercurrent medical illnesses that impairs the patient's tolerance to therapy or limits survival. This includes but is not limited to ongoing or active infection, immunodeficiency, symptomatic congestive heart failure, pulmonary dysfunction, cardiomyopathy, unstable angina pectoris, cardiac arrhythmia, or psychiatric illness/social situations that would limit compliance. Patients with clinically stable and/or chronically managed medical illnesses that are not symptomatic and/or are not expected to impact treatment on protocol are still eligible (conditions to be reviewed by the PI to confirm eligibility).
• Subject with low risk N1 disease (defined as single lymph node \<3cm)
• Active, known, or suspected, autoimmune or inflammatory disorders requiring immunosuppressive therapy, with the exception of low-dose prednisone (\<= 10mg or equivalent). The following are exceptions to these criteria:
• Patients with vitiligo or alopecia.
• Patients with hypothyroidism (e.g., following Hashimoto syndrome) stable on hormone replacement.
• Any chronic skin condition that does not require systemic treatment.
• Treatment with immunosuppressive or replacement medication:
• Immunosuppressive doses of systemic medication, such as steroids or absorbed topical steroids (doses \> 10 mg/day prednisone or equivalent), within 14 days of the first administration of study treatment. Note: inhaled or topical steroids and adrenal replacement in doses equivalent to \> 10 mg/day prednisone are permitted in the absence of active autoimmune disease.
• Any chronic immunosuppressive medication within 6 months prior to the first administration of study treatment (unless agreed otherwise between the Sponsor and the Investigator on a case-by-case basis).
• Active autoimmune disease that has required systemic treatment in past 2 years (i.e., with use of disease modifying agents, corticosteroids, or immunosuppressive drugs). Replacement therapy (e.g., thyroxine, insulin, or physiologic corticosteroid replacement therapy for adrenal or pituitary insufficiency, etc.) is not considered a form of systemic treatment.
• Patients who have had a prior anaphylactic or other severe reaction to human immunoglobulin or antibody formulation administration.
• Herbal remedies with immune-stimulating properties or known to potentially interfere with major organ function within 28 days prior to the first dose of study treatment, unless agreed otherwise with the primary investigator.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Chicago: lead

Study Sites (1)

The University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center

Chicago, Illinois, 60637, United States

RECRUITING

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Oropharyngeal Neoplasms

Interventions

toripalimab; Carboplatin; Paclitaxel

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Pharyngeal Neoplasms; Otorhinolaryngologic Neoplasms; Head and Neck Neoplasms; Neoplasms by Site; Neoplasms; Pharyngeal Diseases; Stomatognathic Diseases; Otorhinolaryngologic Diseases

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Coordination Complexes; Organic Chemicals; Taxoids; Cyclodecanes; Cycloparaffins; Hydrocarbons, Alicyclic; Hydrocarbons, Cyclic; Hydrocarbons; Diterpenes; Terpenes

Study Officials

• Ari Rosenberg

  University of Chicago

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Cancer Trials Intake

CONTACT

1-855-702-8222; cancerclinicaltrials@bsd.uchicago.edu

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: phase 2
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: December 12, 2025
• First Posted: December 18, 2025
• Study Start: February 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): February 1, 2030
• Study Completion (Estimated): February 1, 2033
• Last Updated: February 6, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-02

Locations

US (1)