ConstipationPhase 2NCT07723729
Butyrate Yogurt for Cancer Constipation
A Phase 2 study testing butyrate-containing short-chain fatty acid yogurt in people with Constipation and Gastrointestinal Cancer, run by Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital.
Trial summary
Constipation is a common yet underrecognized supportive care issue in cancer patients. Its consequences extend beyond physical discomfort to include impaired quality of life, reduced opioid adherence leading to inadequate analgesia, and increased risks of fecal impaction, emergency visits, and hospitalization. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 years and older
- Conditions the study is for
- Constipation, Gastrointestinal Cancer
- What is being tested?
- butyrate-containing short-chain fatty acid yogurt
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 30 participants
- Where
- No sites listed yet
- Study dates
- 1 Aug 2026to 30 Dec 2027
- Phase
- Phase 2
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 years and older
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Age ≥ 18 years.
- Histologically confirmed diagnosis of gastrointestinal malignancy.
- Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0-2.
- Confirmed < 3 spontaneous bowel movements (CSBM) per week during the 1-week baseline period, accompanied by constipation-related symptoms (e.g., straining, hard/lumpy stools, sensation of incomplete evacuation, etc.).
- Anticancer treatment regimen is expected to remain relatively stable during the study period.
- Willing and able to provide written informed consent and complete electronic diary entries.
Who cannot join
- Mechanical intestinal obstruction, active inflammatory bowel disease, severe rectal stricture, or acute abdomen.
- Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) < 1.0 × 10⁹/L or active infection.
- New initiation or major dose adjustment of prosecretory or prokinetic agents within the past 2 weeks.
- Allergy or hypersensitivity to dairy products or any component of the butyrate-containing yogurt formulation.
- Deemed unsuitable for enrollment by the investigator (e.g., poor compliance, cognitive impairment, or other conditions that may interfere with study participation).
Trial locations and contacts
No sites are listed yet. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
About this study
Official title: A Phase II Study on the Efficacy and Safety of Butyrate-Containing Short-Chain Fatty Acid Yogurt in Constipation in Patients With Gastrointestinal Malignancies
Constipation is a common yet underrecognized supportive care issue in cancer patients. Its consequences extend beyond physical discomfort to include impaired quality of life, reduced opioid adherence leading to inadequate analgesia, and increased risks of fecal impaction, emergency visits, and hospitalization. Current management strategies-including laxatives, stool softeners, prokinetics, and PAMORAs-remain suboptimal due to limited effects on gut dysbiosis, mucosal barrier dysfunction, and chronic inflammation, as well as issues related to polypharmacy, variable efficacy, and long-term tolerability. Hence, there is a clear need for novel, well-tolerated, long-term interventions with nutritional benefits that target the gut microbiota-mucosal barrier-motility axis.
Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), particularly butyrate, are key microbial metabolites that may improve constipation through multiple mechanisms: enhancing intestinal motility via enteric nervous system regulation, reinforcing mucosal barrier integrity and mitigating low-grade inflammation, and restoring gut microbial-metabolite homeostasis. Butyrate supplementation therefore holds mechanistic promise for cancer-related constipation.
The "Small Blue Can High Dietary Fiber Butyrate SCFA Yogurt" (Blueglass) is designed with a "probiotics + prebiotics + acids" synergistic fermentation platform, delivering ≥70 mg/100 g butyrate combined with high dietary fiber. Compared with conventional laxatives or single-agent butyrate, this yogurt-based formulation offers potential advantages in patient acceptability, long-term adherence, dual exogenous and endogenous SCFA support, and multi-target action on motility, microbiome, and barrier function, making it a promising candidate for supportive care in this population.
- Conditions
- Constipation, Gastrointestinal Cancer
- Being tested
- butyrate-containing short-chain fatty acid yogurt
- Medical subject headings
- Constipation, Gastrointestinal Neoplasms
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
butyrate-containing short-chain fatty acid yogurtDietary supplement
Eligible constipated patients were treated with butyrate-containing short-chain fatty acid yogurt
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Treatment group receiving butyrate-enriched short-chain fatty acid yogurt | Experimental | Not described Receives: Dietary Supplement: butyrate-containing short-chain fatty acid yogurt |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Efficacy rate for constipation
Measured: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 6 weeks
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted23 Jul 2026
- Study start1 Aug 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion1 Aug 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion30 Dec 2027 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for ConstipationStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and HospitalThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase 2
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 30 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07723729
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- TJMUCH-GI-ST03
- Status last verified
- Jul 2026
- First submitted
- 20 Jul 2026
- Last updated
- 23 Jul 2026
- Results posted
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 23 Jul 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- A Phase II Study on the Efficacy and Safety of Butyrate-Containing Short-Chain Fatty Acid Yogurt in Constipation in Patients With Gastrointestinal Malignancies
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07723729
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- TJMUCH-GI-ST03
- Conditions
- Constipation, Gastrointestinal Cancer
- Phase
- Phase 2
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Not yet recruiting
- Enrolment
- 30 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and HospitalUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 1 Aug 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion
- 1 Aug 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 30 Dec 2027 (estimated)
- First posted
- 23 Jul 2026 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
Constipation is a common yet underrecognized supportive care issue in cancer patients. Its consequences extend beyond physical discomfort to include impaired quality of life, reduced opioid adherence leading to inadequate analgesia, and increased risks of fecal impaction, emergency visits, and hospitalization. Current management strategies-including laxatives, stool softeners, prokinetics, and PAMORAs-remain suboptimal due to limited effects on gut dysbiosis, mucosal barrier dysfunction, and chronic inflammation, as well as issues related to polypharmacy, variable efficacy, and long-term tolerability. Hence, there is a clear need for novel, well-tolerated, long-term interventions with nutritional benefits that target the gut microbiota-mucosal barrier-motility axis.
Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), particularly butyrate, are key microbial metabolites that may improve constipation through multiple mechanisms: enhancing intestinal motility via enteric nervous system regulation, reinforcing mucosal barrier integrity and mitigating low-grade inflammation, and restoring gut microbial-metabolite homeostasis. Butyrate supplementation therefore holds mechanistic promise for cancer-related constipation.
The "Small Blue Can High Dietary Fiber Butyrate SCFA Yogurt" (Blueglass) is designed with a "probiotics + prebiotics + acids" synergistic fermentation platform, delivering ≥70 mg/100 g butyrate combined with high dietary fiber. Compared with conventional laxatives or single-agent butyrate, this yogurt-based formulation offers potential advantages in patient acceptability, long-term adherence, dual exogenous and endogenous SCFA support, and multi-target action on motility, microbiome, and barrier function, making it a promising candidate for supportive care in this population.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 1
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Treatment group receiving butyrate-enriched short-chain fatty acid yogurt | Experimental | Dietary Supplement: butyrate-containing short-chain fatty acid yogurt |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 years and older
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Not accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (6 listed)
- Age ≥ 18 years.
- Histologically confirmed diagnosis of gastrointestinal malignancy.
- Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0-2.
- Confirmed < 3 spontaneous bowel movements (CSBM) per week during the 1-week baseline period, accompanied by constipation-related symptoms (e.g., straining, hard/lumpy stools, sensation of incomplete evacuation, etc.).
- Anticancer treatment regimen is expected to remain relatively stable during the study period.
Key exclusion criteria (5 listed)
- Mechanical intestinal obstruction, active inflammatory bowel disease, severe rectal stricture, or acute abdomen.
- Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) < 1.0 × 10⁹/L or active infection.
- New initiation or major dose adjustment of prosecretory or prokinetic agents within the past 2 weeks.
- Allergy or hypersensitivity to dairy products or any component of the butyrate-containing yogurt formulation.
- Deemed unsuitable for enrollment by the investigator (e.g., poor compliance, cognitive impairment, or other conditions that may interfere with study participation).
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| butyrate-containing short-chain fatty acid yogurtEligible constipated patients were treated with butyrate-containing short-chain fatty acid yogurt | Dietary supplement | Treatment group receiving butyrate-enriched short-chain fatty acid yogurt |
Primary outcome
Efficacy rate for constipation
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 6 weeks
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 23 Jul 2026.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A Phase 2 study testing butyrate-containing short-chain fatty acid yogurt in people with Constipation and Gastrointestinal Cancer, run by Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 6 inclusion and 5 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: opening soon, as of the sponsor's last update on 23 Jul 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
What does this phase mean?
Phase 2 studies give the treatment to a larger group to see whether it has the intended effect and to keep checking safety.
Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Tao Ning (+8613821828358, ningtao37@163.com), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Efficacy rate for constipation (time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 6 weeks). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 23 Jul 2026.