Condition (MeSH)
Carcinoma, Merkel Cell
ClinicalTrials.gov lists 147 trials for Carcinoma, Merkel Cell or a narrower condition beneath it. National Cancer Institute (NCI) has the most among industry and government lead sponsors, with 10.
Search trials, drugs, companies and investigators, and follow each one to the others. Individual plan, $249/seat/mo. Card required.
Trials per phase (log scale)
147 of the 147 trials are tagged with Carcinoma, Merkel Cell itself; the rest are tagged with a narrower condition beneath it.
When did Carcinoma, Merkel Cell trials start? (24)
Shown in this order: most recent first, 1990 onwards. 2026 is partial: trials registered with a 2026 start date so far, not a full year.
Trials over time, by phase
- Phase 1
- Phase 1/2
- Phase 2
- Phase 2/3
- Phase 3
- Not applicable
- Observational
Top of scale: 15
Trials registered with a start date in each year, 1990 onward, stacked by phase (complete years only; the current partial year is in the table's notes). The table below lists the same counts, most recent years first.
| Year | Trials started |
|---|---|
| 2026 (partial year) | 6 |
| 2025 | 8 |
| 2024 | 6 |
| 2023 | 13 |
| 2022 | 10 |
| 2021 | 14 |
| 2020 | 13 |
| 2019 | 15 |
| 2018 | 10 |
| 2017 | 13 |
Showing 10 of 24 earlier years.
Forecast of the full-year count, planned starts included, not rows of this table: about 6 trials starting in 2026 and about 7 in 2027, the average of the 24 months through September, counted as registered and carried forward. The rows of this table count trials registered so far with a start date in the year, planned starts included; the forecast looks ahead to the count for the whole year, so it is not the same measure. In backtests on conditions of this size, forecasts made part-way through the year were typically off by about 28 percent and ran about 20 percent low against the count later registered; forecasts made before the year began were off by about 39 percent and ran about 37 percent low against the count later registered. These figures rest on a few years of history (target years from 2018 to 2025, varying by figure), place each condition as it is mapped today rather than as it was then, and score against a count for the newest year that was still being revised. Only condition series were scored. The 2026 forecast is below the 6 already registered with a 2026 start date: at the cutoff, 2 trials were already registered to start in October to December, more than the method's monthly average allows for, and the method does not use those planned starts.
Prediction, not a registry value: median of 36 months from start to primary completion across 31 trials still running at the 2026-10-09 snapshot; registered median of 40 months across 85 trials with a primary completion typed Actual. Source: ClinicalTrials.gov / AACT (CTTI), public domain.
What phase are Carcinoma, Merkel Cell trials in? (8)
Shown in this order: phase order.
Show the trials by phase as a table
| Phase | Trials |
|---|---|
| Phase 1 | 40 |
| Phase 1/2 | 32 |
| Phase 2 | 50 |
| Phase 2/3 | 1 |
| Phase 3 | 4 |
| Not applicable | 8 |
| Observational | 10 |
| Expanded access | 2 |
How many Carcinoma, Merkel Cell trials are recruiting? (9)
Shown in this order: the order a trial moves through, from not yet recruiting to unknown.
| Status | Trials |
|---|---|
| Not yet recruiting | 5 |
| Recruiting | 31 |
| Active, not recruiting | 24 |
| Available | 1 |
| Completed | 45 |
Showing 5 of 9 statuses.
Status as registered on ClinicalTrials.gov. Each trial is counted once.
Which lead sponsors run the most Carcinoma, Merkel Cell trials? (8)
Shown in this order: most trials first. Lead sponsors the registry classes as industry, NIH, US federal, other government or network. A hospital or university the registry files as government can appear here. Sponsors it classes as academic or other are shown on the full page, because that class cannot separate an institution from a named investigator.
| Sponsor | Trials |
|---|---|
| National Cancer Institute (NCI) | 10 |
| Fate Therapeutics | 4 |
| ImmunityBio, Inc. | 4 |
| Incyte Biosciences International Sàrl | 4 |
| Incyte Corporation | 4 |
Showing 5 of 8 sponsors.
Which drugs are being tested for Carcinoma, Merkel Cell? (8)
Shown in this order: most trials first. One row per drug, matched to a single molecule under all its names, ranked by number of trials.
| Drug | Trials |
|---|---|
| PEMBROLIZUMAB | 23 |
| Avelumab | 15 |
| NIVOLUMAB | 14 |
| IPILIMUMAB | 8 |
| Cytoxan | 8 |
Showing 5 of 8 drugs.
Interventions as named in the registry (7)
Shown in this order: most trials first.
| Drug | Trials |
|---|---|
| Radiation Therapy | 6 |
| SQ Fludarabine | 5 |
| Atezolizumab SC | 4 |
| IFx-Hu2.0 | 4 |
| Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy | 3 |
Showing 5 of 7 interventions.
These are the names sponsors entered on ClinicalTrials.gov that we have not matched to a single molecule. Some are drugs under a brand or code name; others are procedures, doses or arm labels.
Which serious adverse events do Carcinoma, Merkel Cell trials report? (10)
Shown in this order: most subjects affected first. Subjects affected summed across trials, a cross-trial signal, not a rate.
| Adverse event | Subjects affected | Trials |
|---|---|---|
| Malignant neoplasm progression | 46 | 5 |
| Disease progression | 32 | 3 |
| Pneumonia | 31 | 8 |
| Abdominal pain | 22 | 9 |
| Acute kidney injury | 21 | 9 |
Showing 5 of 10 adverse events.
Which publications cover Carcinoma, Merkel Cell? (50)
Shown in this order: major-topic papers first, then newest, then most linked to trials.
| Publication | Journal | Year | Major topic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neoadjuvant lenvatinib plus pembrolizumab in Merkel cell carcinoma: an investigator-initiated, open-label phase II trial. | Journal for immunotherapy of cancer | 2026 | Yes |
| Nivolumab With or Without Ipilimumab in Patients With Recurrent or Metastatic Merkel Cell Carcinoma: A Nonrandomized, Open-Label, International, Multicenter Phase I/II Study. | Journal of clinical oncology : official journal of the American Society of Clinical Oncology | 2025 | Yes |
| Design and rationale of the phase II PANDORA trial: first line chemo-immunotherapy in advanced Merkel cell carcinoma. | Future oncology (London, England) | 2025 | Yes |
| Phase II study of retifanlimab in patients with recurrent locally advanced or metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma (POD1UM-201). | Journal for immunotherapy of cancer | 2025 | Yes |
| Circulating cancer-specific CD8 T cell frequency is associated with response to PD-1 blockade in Merkel cell carcinoma. | Cell reports. Medicine | 2024 | Yes |
Showing 5 of 50 publications.
Prevalence (12)
Shown in this order: jurisdiction, then disease name. Orphanet observation for the mapped ORPHA concept; the mapping relation column says whether that concept is exactly this condition or broader or narrower.
| Orphanet disease | Type | Class | Geography | Jurisdiction | Mapping relation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cutaneous neuroendocrine carcinoma | Annual incidence | 1-9 / 1 000 000 | United Kingdom | GB | Unspecified |
| Cutaneous neuroendocrine carcinoma | Annual incidence | 1-9 / 100 000 | United States | US | Unspecified |
| Cutaneous neuroendocrine carcinoma | Annual incidence | 1-9 / 1 000 000 | Europe | Not stated | Unspecified |
| Cutaneous neuroendocrine carcinoma | Annual incidence | 1-9 / 1 000 000 | Denmark | Not stated | Unspecified |
| Cutaneous neuroendocrine carcinoma | Annual incidence | 1-9 / 1 000 000 | Worldwide | Not stated | Unspecified |
Showing 5 of 12 prevalence observations.
Not on this page
Not measured: delivery record.
Checked, with nothing recorded for this condition: rare-disease identity and sub-conditions in mesh.