Bladder Cancer Clinical Trials and Research

MSK is a major research institution. During your treatment for bladder cancer, your care team may ask if you want to join a clinical trial.

What is a clinical trial?

Clinical trials are research studies that test new treatments, procedures, or devices to see how well they work. They are an important part of helping to prevent, treat, and cure cancer. Almost every cancer treatment given to patients was first tested during a clinical trial.

MSK tests new treatments for bladder cancer. Treatment trials test new drugs, drug combinations, devices, and ways of doing procedures, surgery, or radiation therapy.

Sometimes a clinical trial gives you access to new therapies that are not yet available at most hospitals. Talk with your doctor about whether joining a clinical trial is right for you.

Clinical trials are designed to answer questions about:

  • Safety
  • Benefits
  • Side effects
  • Whether some people are helped more than others

MSK will start a clinical trial only if our researchers think we can improve methods for cancer:

  • Prevention
  • Treatment
  • Diagnosis
  • Screening

For more information, please read Clinical Trials at MSK: What You Need to Know.

MSK is developing or improving treatments for people with bladder cancer.

  • We led the way in developing immunotherapy drugs for advanced bladder cancer.
  • Our patients were among the first to get atezolizumab (Tencentriq®) as part of a clinical trial. Based on this research, it became the first new drug approved for bladder cancer in more than 20 years.
  • Our researchers also directed studies that led to the approval of pembrolizumab (Keytruda®) for bladder cancer.

Current bladder cancer research at MSK

Our current research focuses on genetics and people with bladder cancer. We’re looking at who is more likely to respond well to these immunotherapy drugs, based on the genetic makeup of their tumors.

We’re always looking for ways to make these immunotherapy drugs work better in more people. That includes combining a checkpoint inhibitor with chemotherapy, and testing combinations of checkpoint inhibitors.

MSK researchers also are exploring ways to improve responses to bladder cancer treatments other than immunotherapy.

Our experts can help determine which clinical trial is right for you, including some of our newly opened clinical trials:

You can see a current listing of MSK’s clinical trials for bladder cancer below.

and/or
25 Clinical Trials found
A Phase 2 Study of Autogene Cevumeran Plus Nivolumab Immunotherapy Versus Nivolumab Alone in People With Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer
Researchers want to see if adding autogene cevumeran to nivolumab is better than nivolumab alone to treat urothelial (bladder) cancer. The people in this study have muscle-invasive urothelial cancer (MIUC) that has been removed with surgery.
New York City, Commack, Basking Ridge, Westchester, Monmouth, Bergen, Nassau
A Phase 2 Study of Datopotamab Deruxtecan Alone or With Other Anti-Cancer Drugs in People Endometrial, Ovarian, and Urothelial Cancers
Researchers want to see how well datopotamab deruxtecan (Dato-DXd) works alone and with other drugs against cancer. The people in this study have endometrial, ovarian, or urothelial cancer that has metastasized (spread).
New York City, Commack, Basking Ridge, Westchester, Monmouth, Bergen, Nassau
A Phase 2 Study of Disitamab Vedotin Alone and with Pembrolizumab Immunotherapy in People with Inoperable or Metastatic Urothelial Cancer
In this study, researchers are assessing the safety and effectiveness of giving the drug disitamab vedotin alone and in combination with pembrolizumab immunotherapy in people with inoperable or metastatic urothelial cancers that make too much of the HER2 protein. Disitamab vedotin targets and kills cancer cells with the HER2 protein. Pembrolizumab boosts the power of the immune system to detect and destroy cancer cells.
New York City, Commack, Basking Ridge, Westchester, Monmouth, Bergen, Nassau
A Phase 2 Study of Enfortumab Vedotin in People with Urothelial Cancer of the Upper Urinary Tract
Urothelial cancers can grow in different parts of the urinary tract. This includes the ureter (the tube that carries urine from the kidneys to the bladder) and renal pelvis. The renal pelvis is where the ureter connects to the kidneys. The standard treatment is surgery to remove the ureter, kidney, or both. In this study, researchers want to see if enfortumab vedotin, given before surgery, is useful for treating urothelial cancers. The people in this study have high-risk urothelial cancers of the upper urinary tract. High risk means there is a greater chance of the cancer coming back after treatment.
New York City, Commack, Basking Ridge, Westchester, Monmouth, Bergen, Nassau
A Phase 2 Study of Raludotatug Deruxtecan in People With Advanced Solid Tumors
Researchers want to see how well raludotatug deruxtecan (R-DXd) works against advanced solid tumors. The people in this study have the following cancers, which have spread despite treatment:
New York City, Commack, Basking Ridge, Westchester, Monmouth, Bergen, Nassau
A Phase 2/3 Study Assessing Tumor DNA in the Blood to Guide the Use of Immunotherapy After Bladder Cancer Surgery
This study is assessing a blood test that may tell doctors which people need immunotherapy after bladder cancer surgery. Many types of tumors lose cells into the bloodstream and shed their DNA. This circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) may be found before changes in a tumor can be seen on scans.
New York City, Commack, Basking Ridge, Westchester, Monmouth, Bergen, Nassau
A Phase 3 Study Assessing BCG Therapy With and Without Gemcitabine in People With Non-Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer That Came Back After Prior BCG
Bacillus Calmette Guerin (BCG) is standard therapy for people with bladder cancer that has not grown into the muscle wall. It is given intravesically (directly into the bladder) and stimulates the immune system to kill cancer cells. But sometimes the cancer comes back.
New York City, Commack, Basking Ridge, Westchester, Monmouth, Bergen, Nassau
A Phase I Study of 2141-V11 Immunotherapy in People with Non-Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer that Did Not Respond to Standard Treatment
The purpose of this study is to find the highest dose of the investigational immunotherapy 2141-V11 that can be given safely in people with bladder cancer that has not invaded the bladder muscle wall, has come back after BCG therapy, and will not be surgically removed. The drug 2141-V11 attaches to a protein on immune cells and activates the immune system to find and kill bladder cancer cells. It is given directly into the bladder through a catheter (flexible tube).
New York City, Commack, Basking Ridge, Westchester, Monmouth, Bergen, Nassau
A Phase II Study of Enfortumab Vedotin and Pembrolizumab Immunotherapy Given Before Surgery in People with Bladder Cancer
Researchers in this study are assessing the combination of enfortumab vedotin with pembrolizumab immunotherapy in people with bladder cancer that has spread to nearby lymph nodes and will be surgically removed. Both medications are already used to treat bladder cancer, but their use together before surgery is considered investigational. Both drugs help the immune system attack and kill cancer cells. The study investigators will see if this combination treatment can get rid of cancer in the lymph nodes and shrink patients' tumors before surgery.
New York City, Commack, Basking Ridge, Westchester, Monmouth, Bergen, Nassau
A Phase II Study of Ipilimumab and Nivolumab Immunotherapy plus Cabozantinib to Treat Rare Advanced Genitourinary Cancers
The purpose of this study is to assess the safety and effectiveness of treating rare advanced genitourinary cancers with the immunotherapies nivolumab and ipilimumab plus the drug cabozantinib.
New York City, Commack, Basking Ridge, Westchester, Monmouth, Bergen, Nassau