How to Search Lung Cancer Clinical Trials Without Getting Lost

Last fact-checked: August 30, 2026

Lung cancer studies fill long lists. Some are for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Some are for small cell lung cancer (SCLC). Some need a gene test. Some do not. NIH says you should use ClinicalTrials.gov with advice from a clinician, and that a listing does not mean the U.S. government has judged the study.

This guide shows a simple search path. It uses live ClinicalTrials.gov records. It also uses listed U.S. studies from the Corterve catalog as examples only. It does not say any reader can join a study. It does not claim that any investigational product is safe or works.

Browse listed lung cancer studies on Corterve: corterve.com/trials?condition=lung-cancer. The condition hub is corterve.com/conditions/lung-cancer.

Start with your own notes, not a random NCT ID

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) says the first step is to gather details about the cancer, then compare those details with a trial’s rules. NCI calls those rules eligibility criteria. They can include type, stage, past treatment, gene changes, age, and current health.

Write down, with your care team:

• NSCLC or SCLC (or mixed, if that is what pathology showed)
• Stage, and whether the cancer has come back
• Treatments already used (surgery, radiation, chemo, immunotherapy, targeted therapy)
• Gene or protein tests, if you have them (EGFR, ALK, ROS1, RET, KRAS, MET, PD-L1, and others)
• Cities you can reach, and how often you can travel

NCI also says protocol summaries are written for health workers and can be hard to read. You do not have to decode them alone. Bring the notes to your oncologist.

For a wider primer on phases, see Corterve’s phase 3 explainer and what to know before joining a trial.

Use two search boxes, then filter locally

NIH points people to ClinicalTrials.gov for studies across the United States and the world. NCI also keeps a cancer-focused search and says no single list has every trial.

A practical order:

1. Search ClinicalTrials.gov for “non-small cell lung cancer” or “small cell lung cancer,” not only “lung cancer.” The two groups are not the same.
2. Set status to recruiting or not yet recruiting if you want open sites. Then still open the location list. A study can be recruiting overall while one city is completed, suspended, or not yet open.
3. Search Corterve at trials?condition=lung-cancer for listed U.S. records. The public catalog’s status and country filters are not reliable on the API; filter by condition, country, and site status on the page you see.
4. Keep the NCT ID. That is the stable public ID. Share it with your clinician.

NIH is clear: listing a study does not mean federal review of that study. Confirm what you find with the study team and your own doctor.

Know what “phase” and “type” actually mean

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) describes drug development in steps. Laboratory work comes first. Then animal testing. Then clinical research in people. Then FDA review. Then safety watching after a product is on the market. A recruiting trial is still in the “people” step. It is not an approved new use.

NIH and NCI describe phases in plain terms:

• Phase 1 looks at safety, side effects, and dose in a small group.
• Phase 2 looks further at safety and whether the approach seems to do what researchers hope.
• Phase 3 compares the approach with usual care in a larger group.
• Phase 4 happens after FDA approval, to learn more in wider use.

NCI also lists trial types: treatment, prevention, screening, and supportive (palliative) care. A lung cancer search will mix these. A blood-collection study is not the same as a treatment trial. Read the study type before you call a site.

NIH says taking part is voluntary. You can leave a study. Informed consent, under FDA rules, is a process, not only a signature. The research team must explain purpose, procedures, time, risks, possible benefits, and who to call. You can ask questions before you sign.

Why biomarker filters matter in lung cancer

Many NSCLC studies now split people by gene changes. That is why a wide “lung cancer” search feels noisy.

Look at three catalog examples from Corterve’s listed U.S. recruiting sample. They are not recommendations. They are not a claim that any reader belongs in them. Locations are subject to current site status.

Catalog example 1: NCT06236438 (LIVIGNO-4)

• NCT ID: NCT06236438
• Phase: 2/3
• Sponsor: AbbVie
• Condition on the record: non-small cell lung cancer
• What the record says it is studying: livmoniplimab plus budigalimab plus chemo, compared with pembrolizumab plus chemo, in untreated metastatic non-squamous NSCLC
• Listed U.S. recruiting locations in the live record (subject to current site status): Houston Methodist Hospital (Houston, Texas); University of Chicago Medical Center (Chicago, Illinois); Oncology Hematology Care in Cincinnati, Ohio; Texas Oncology in San Antonio and Plano; and other U.S. sites
• ClinicalTrials.gov last verified: August 2026

The public record says people with known EGFR, ALK, or other changes that already have an approved targeted therapy are not in this design. That is an example of why gene reports belong in your search notes. It is not a promise about results.

Houston readers can also check the community page at corterve.com/community/texas/houston. Chicago: corterve.com/community/illinois/chicago.

Catalog example 2: NCT05498428 (PALOMA-2)

• NCT ID: NCT05498428
• Phase: 2
• Sponsor: Janssen Research & Development, LLC
• Condition on the record: non-small cell lung cancer
• What the record says it is studying: subcutaneous amivantamab in several groups of advanced or metastatic solid tumors, including EGFR-mutated NSCLC
• Listed U.S. recruiting locations in the live record (subject to current site status): Boston Medical Center (Boston, Massachusetts); Swedish Cancer Institute (Seattle, Washington); Stanford Cancer Institute; University of California San Diego; and other U.S. sites. Cleveland Clinic locations on the same record are listed as completed, not recruiting.
• ClinicalTrials.gov last verified: August 2026

This is a reminder to read site status, not only city name. A metro can appear on a protocol after that hospital has finished enrolling.

Boston: corterve.com/community/massachusetts/boston. Seattle: corterve.com/community/washington/seattle.

Catalog example 3: NCT06892548

• NCT ID: NCT06892548
• Phase: 1/2
• Sponsor: BioNTech SE
• Condition on the record: advanced lung cancer (NSCLC and SCLC groups in the protocol)
• What the record says it is studying: investigational combination of BNT324 and BNT327
• Listed U.S. recruiting locations in the live record (subject to current site status): MD Anderson Cancer Center (Houston, Texas); Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute (Cleveland, Ohio); Memorial Sloan Kettering and Mount Sinai (New York, New York); Cedars-Sinai (Los Angeles, California); Texas Oncology in Dallas; and other U.S. sites
• ClinicalTrials.gov last verified: August 2026

The record describes these products as investigational. That means they are still being studied. It is not evidence that they are safe or effective for lung cancer.

New York: corterve.com/community/new-york/new-york. Los Angeles: corterve.com/community/california/los-angeles. Dallas: corterve.com/community/texas/dallas. Cleveland: corterve.com/community/ohio/cleveland.

How to read a location list without getting fooled

A few habits save time:

• Overall status is not site status. A trial can be recruiting while your nearest hospital is “not yet recruiting,” “active, not recruiting,” “completed,” or “withdrawn.”
• Facility names can be messy. The same health system may appear under more than one address. Confirm the street location with the coordinator.
• Travel is part of the protocol. NCI asks you to look at how often visits happen, not only the city on the map.
• Do not treat a matcher as a green light. Corterve lists studies. The study team decides eligibility after consent and screening.

If you live near several research metros, compare community pages rather than guessing: Houston, Seattle, Boston, Los Angeles, and New York.

Questions to take to your oncologist

NIH publishes a question list for people thinking about trials. NCI adds cancer-specific steps. You can ask:

• Does this NCT ID match my cancer type and stage?
• Do I need new biomarker tests before a referral makes sense?
• What is usual care for me if I do not join a study?
• How many extra visits, scans, or biopsies does this protocol add?
• Who pays for research procedures, and who pays for routine care?
• If I start a study, can I stop?

NIH says you should learn risks and possible benefits before you take part. FDA rules require that consent explain reasonably foreseeable risks, other options, and that participation is voluntary.

See how AI matching works on Corterve for the product view, then still ask your clinician.

What this article does not do

It does not enroll anyone. It does not rank sponsors. It does not say a listed study is better than standard care. Investigational drugs and combinations on these records are still in research. Safety and whether they work for a given use are what the trials are trying to learn.

If a record and a catalog copy disagree, trust the live ClinicalTrials.gov page and the site coordinator. Catalogs lag. Site desks do not.

Disclaimer. Corterve is a clinical trial matching platform, not a medical provider. Matching is not a diagnosis and is not medical advice. Corterve does not decide who can join a study. Eligibility is decided only by the study team at each site. Listed locations are subject to current site status and can change. Investigational products are not proven safe or effective for the uses under study. Talk with a licensed clinician before you change care or contact a research site.

Last fact-checked: August 30, 2026