Clinical Trials and Early Clinical Trials Units

With more than 300 studies per year, the UCT Frankfurt is one of the leading German locations for clinical research. One of our research priorities is the development of personalized medicine, which classifies tumor diseases based on individual genome-, proteome- and therapy-specific profiles instead of primary tumors and histology. In line with the concept from bench to bedside and supported by the UCT trial coordination center CTCN Office, results from basic and translational cancer research are transferred into early and/or molecularly stratified clinical trials in our Phase I/II units at the University Hospital Frankfurt and the Nordwest Hospital. CTCN office also supports Phase II, III and IV clinical trials with a special focus on brain tumors, acute leukemia, esophageal, liver and rectal cancer. 

A list of all clinical trials conducted at the UCT Frankfurt can be accessed via the UCT trial registry.

Our Early Clinical Trial Units (ECTU), the José Carreras Unit for Molecular Therapies at the University Hospital Frankfurt, and the Phase I Unit at the Institute for Clinical Oncology Research, Nordwest Hospital, are specialized facilities for conducting early clinical trials in cancer patients. Our special expertise is in phase I/II and first-in-patient trials, which are mainly conducted in outpatient settings.

Early phase clinical trials of all cancer entities are conducted in both units, which is also offered as a service to all other departments and regional cooperation partners. We particularly focus on testing targeted molecular therapies in hematological diseases, gastric cancer and molecularly defined groups of cancer. In cooperation with the researchers of the Frankfurt Cancer Institute (FCI) and the DKTK Frankfurt/Mainz, we also develop translational research projects alongside active clinical trials.

In the field of brain tumors, Frankfurt is partner of the German Glioma Network (GGN) and one of the top recruiting German centers for cooperative studies of the Neurooncological Working Group (NOA) and of the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC). The UCT Neurooncology Program has pioneered ground-breaking neuroimaging methods and initiated various translational research programs as well as early clinical trials with innovative cell therapies.

Another focus of clinical research is acute leukemia (ALL and AML). In the field of AML, hematologists investigate the role of kinase inhibitors and epigenetically active drugs in large multicenter studies and develop national and international transplantation protocols for acute leukemia in children and adults. 

The head office of the German multicenter study group for adult ALL (GMALL) is located in Frankfurt. The GMALL is the worldwide largest study group with 9 generations of prospective clinical trials for newly diagnosed ALL since 1980. The GMALL runs large scale multicenter trials in Germany and a nationwide prospective registry for all newly diagnosed ALL patients in conjunction with a biobank. Through treatment recommendations and clinical trials the group supports optimal standard of care of adult ALL patients all over Germany.

Furthermore, Frankfurt is an internationally recognized center for haploidentical stem cell transplantation.

Multimodal treatment strategies for rectal, liver and esophageal cancer are the third area of core competence. The German Rectal Cancer Study Group plays a leading role in academically initiated multicenter phase I-III trials aimed at establishing the concept of preoperative radiochemotherapy and integrating new combinations of chemotherapy as well as targeted therapies into the multimodal treatment of locally advanced rectal cancer. Furthermore, local hepatologists have developed treatment strategies for primary and metastatic tumors of the liver. Another strength at UCT Frankfurt is the multimodal treatment of esophageal and gastric cancer within the German Gastric Cancer Study Group, with several phase I-III trials focusing on the optimization of palliative and neoadjuvant treatment approaches for resectable tumors, including the testing of new drugs such as novel immuno- or vaccine therapies. These efforts also have the goal to identify molecular biomarkers to predict treatment responses and to detect further targets for innovative treatment options.