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Risk-adapted Therapy in HPV+ Oropharyngeal Cancer Using Circulating Tumor (ct)HPV DNA Profile - The ReACT Study

  • PhasePhase 2
  • StatusRecruiting
  • Planned enrollment145 people
  • Recruiting US sites2
  • SponsorJonathan Schoenfeld, MD, MPH
  • RegistryNCT04900623

Recruitment re-checked on ClinicalTrials.gov Oct 30, 2026. Public record; not medical advice.

Risk-adapted Therapy in HPV+ Oropharyngeal Cancer Using Circulating Tumor (ct)HPV DNA Profile - The ReACT Study: a one-minute explainerNCT049006231 min

Eligibility

Who can join

The film gives the main points. The full list below is copied from the registry; the study team makes the final decision.

  • Age22 Years to no maximum
  • SexAll
  • Healthy volunteersNo

You may be able to join if

  • Participants must meet the following eligibility criteria at the time of screening to be eligible to participate in the study:
  • Subject must have histologically or cytologically confirmed, stage I, II, or III (N3 disease excluded), HPV associated oropharyngeal (tongue base or tonsil) squamous cell carcinoma, as defined by 2017 American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC), 8th edition staging.
  • - Patients with HPV-associated disease of unknown primary (cT0) are eligible
  • HPV status should be confirmed on tissue biopsy or cytologic sample by any of the following:
  • Immunohistochemical staining for p16 with ≥70% expression
  • Confirmatory DNA testing (PCR or ISH) for high-risk subtype
  • Willing to provide blood and tissue from a diagnostic biopsy and blood samples before, during, and after treatment.
  • Detectable HPV ctDNA blood sample at baseline, prior to treatment, using the NavDx® assay that detects HPV subtype 16
  • Age 22 years or older
  • ECOG performance status ≤ 2
  • Participants should have adequate organ and marrow function if they are to receive chemotherapy (cisplatin, or carboplatin and paclitaxel) with radiation concurrently as determined by standard institutional guidelines and investigator preference (parameters suggested below).
  • absolute neutrophil count (ANC) ≥ 1000
  • platelet count ≥ 100,000
  • total bilirubin of 1.5 or less
  • creatinine of 1.6 or less (or a CrCl ≥50 mL/min) per institutional standards.
  • Planning to receive non-surgical management for HPV+ oropharyngeal cancer
  • 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 72 hours prior to the start of (chemo)radiation therapy. "Women of childbearing potential (WOCBP)" is defined as any female who has experienced menarche and who has not undergone surgical sterilization (hysterectomy or bilateral oophorectomy) or who is not postmenopausal. Menopause is defined clinically as 12 months of amenorrhea in a woman over 45 in the absence of other biological or physiological causes. In addition, women under the age of 55 must have a documented serum follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) level above 40 mIU/mL.
  • Men who are sexually active with WOCBP must agree to use any contraceptive method with a failure rate of less than 1% per year. Men who are sexually active with WOCBP will be instructed to adhere to contraception for a period of 1 month after treatment. Women who are not of childbearing potential (i.e., who are postmenopausal or surgically sterile as well as azoospermic men) do not require contraception.

You cannot join if

  • Patients with AJCC 2017 8th edition stage IVC (metastatic) disease; or patients with fixed cervical nodal disease suggesting extranodal extension or N3 disease as suggested by lymph nodes measuring >6 cm.
  • Subject who has had prior radiation and/or chemotherapy for head and neck cancer.
  • Any history of oncologic surgical resection (transoral robotic surgery, TORS) or oncologic neck dissection prior to undergoing definitive RT or chemoradiation. Note: prior tonsillectomy as part of identification of the primary tumor site or biopsy and excisional nodal biopsy is/are acceptable provided the patient would be standardly treated to definitive treatment doses of therapy off protocol. Patients with HPV-associated unknown primary should not have undergone a neck dissection to be eligible.
  • Undetectable baseline HPV ctDNA result by NavDx® testing or detectable baseline HPV ctDNA result for subtypes 18, 31, 33, or 35.
  • Pregnant or lactating women.
  • Uncontrolled intercurrent illness including, but not limited to, symptomatic congestive heart failure, unstable angina pectoris, cardiac arrhythmia, or psychiatric illness/social situations that would limit compliance with study requirements.
  • Has a known additional malignancy that is progressing or requires active treatment. Exceptions include basal cell carcinoma of the skin or squamous cell carcinoma of the skin that has undergone potentially curative therapy or in situ cervical cancer, and low risk prostate adenocarcinoma being managed with active surveillance. A history of another separate malignancy in remission without evidence of active disease is permitted if chance3 of recurrence is thought to be low.

The treatment

How it is intended to work

This is how the treatment is meant to work. Whether it helps, and how safe it is, is what this trial is testing.

Treatments listed in the registry

  • NavDx HPV ctDNA Testing (Device): Blood will be collected and shared with an outside lab for analysis. This test will be done at Week 4 and at End of Treatment. This test will be done at at End of Treatment and in follow-up at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after completing the study treatment. In years 2 and 3 after treatment, the test will be collected every 6 months or twice a year. The specimens will be identifiable. The specimens will be banked for future use.
  • Radiotherapy (Radiation): Radiation Therapy (administered daily, Monday-Friday). Higher risk participants will receive standard radiation dose for up to 7-8 weeks. Lower risk participants will receive a lower dose and treatment will only last 5-6 weeks.
  • Chemotherapy drug (Drug): Chemotherapy and radiation therapy are both considered standard treatments * Bolus Cisplatin: Infused every 21 days for up to 2 or 3 doses. * Weekly Cisplatin or Carboplatin with Paclitaxel: Infused weekly during radiation therapy.

The study

Treatment groups

Non Randomized · Single Group · masking: None

LOW RISK RT (ALONE OR WITH SOC CHEMO (Experimental)

The research study procedures include: screening for eligibility, and study treatments including evaluations and follow-up visits * NavDx HPV ctDNA Testing: Blood will be collected and shared with an outside lab for analysis (less than 10 mL of blood or about 2 teaspoons). The results of this test will determine what radiation dose received . The specimens will be de-identified. The specimens will be banked for future use. * Radiation Therapy: Lower risk participants will receive a lower dose and treatment will only last 5-6 weeks. * Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy and radiation therapy are both considered standard treatments for your type of cancer. The study doctor will decide whether or not chemotherapy with radiation and the type of chemotherapy. * Bolus Cisplatin: Infused every 21 days for up to 2 or 3 doses. * Weekly Cisplatin or Carboplatin with Paclitaxel: Infused weekly during radiation therapy

INTERMEDIATE RISK RT (ALONE OR WITH SOC CHEMO (Experimental)

The research study procedures include: screening for eligibility, and study treatments including evaluations and follow-up visits * NavDx HPV ctDNA Testing: Blood will be collected and shared with an outside lab for analysis (less than 10 mL of blood or about 2 teaspoons). The results of this test will determine what dose of radiation received. The specimens will be de-identified. The specimens will be banked for future use. * Radiation Therapy: Higher risk participants will receive standard radiation dose for up to 7-8 weeks * Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy and radiation therapy are both considered standard treatments for your type of cancer. The study doctor will decide whether or not chemotherapy with radiation and the type of chemotherapy. * Bolus Cisplatin: Infused every 21 days for up to 2 or 3 doses. * Weekly Cisplatin or Carboplatin with Paclitaxel: Infused weekly during radiation therapy

What it involves

Procedures

As the registry describes them. Requirements to join, such as a tissue sample, are in the eligibility list above even when on-study procedures are optional. Ask the study team which steps apply to you.

  • CT scans: Part of the study plan
  • radiation: Part of the study plan

Goals

What the study measures

Main goals

  • Progression Free Survival 2 Years (2 Years)

Other goals

  • Overall Survival at 2 Years
  • Rate of Distant Failure
  • Best Overall Response
  • Score Change FACT-H&N survey data
  • Safety and Toxicity

Planned enrollment: 145 (estimated).

Where

Recruiting US sites

  • Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts
  • Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts

Site status as of Oct 30, 2026. Check the live record before contacting a site.

Sources

Where this comes from

Registry record reviewed as fetched Oct 30, 2026, last updated by the sponsor Aug 4, 2026. Public record; not medical advice.

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