Telaglenastat dosage and evidence
Written by Aaron CuhaReviewed Sep 2026
The short answer
The only drug of its kind with proper studies in people, and those studies are in cancer. In the main one, 444 people with kidney cancer, the cancer grew again after 9.2 months on the drug and 9.3 months on a dummy pill. It has never been tested on worn-out cells in a person.
Evidence grade for Telaglenastat: Moderate. The rule: at least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. The sum on this page: 3 completed trials, 513 people given it. A grade counts how much has been done to people, not whether it works.
- People given it
- 513
- Human studies
- 3
- Found nothing
- 1
Dose
No human dose established
Amounts that were given in studies sit in Human evidence on this page. None of them is a personal dose.
3 completed trials, 513 people given it
1 effects reported, 1 unwanted, by people using it, not a trial
Goal pages: Ageing and longevity, Immune system and inflammation
In plain English
In plain English, from Aaron
This is how I would explain it to a friend. The evidence, with the numbers, is further down the page.
Telaglenastat is an experimental cancer pill. It blocks an enzyme that, in mice, worn-out cells need to survive. That is why it shows up on lists of clean-up drugs. It is not approved, and every study in people is in cancer.
What people take it for
- Cancer, which is the only use tested in people.
- Clearing worn-out cells, based on mouse studies.
What studies in people showed
In 444 people with kidney cancer, it did not slow the cancer. The cancer grew again after 9.2 months on the drug and 9.3 on a dummy pill. They were also taking cabozantinib. A smaller study of 69 people found 3.8 months against 1.9, but it set a low bar and the bigger study found nothing. Several later studies were stopped. No study measured ageing. In mice, blocking this enzyme cleared worn-out cells.
What people report
Reports, not study results
The good
- We have not collected user reports on this one yet.
The bad
- Serious side effects were common: 71 percent against 79 percent in the big study, and 74 against 61 percent in the small one.
Where these come from: The side effects are from the cancer studies on this page. We have no forum reports for this one.
My bottom line
It failed its big cancer study, and nobody has tested it for ageing. With serious side effects in most people, it is nothing like a drug for healthy people.
An opinion, not a finding. I am a coach, not a doctor.
What it has been measured to do
Measured in people
Goals Telaglenastat has been tested for in people, biggest studies first. We count only what the studies on this page say, so the real numbers may be higher.
- Living longer513 people · 2 studies · 1 found nothing
- Cancer and tumours513 people · 2 studies · 1 found nothing
34 of the 36 indexed goals have no study of any kind behind Telaglenastat
No study in people, animals or cells on this page reports a result for these. That does not prove Telaglenastat does nothing for them. It does mean anything you have heard about Telaglenastat and one of these did not come from a study cited here.
Show full evidence
What is Telaglenastat?
The only drug of its kind with proper studies in people, and those studies are in cancer. In the main one, 444 people with kidney cancer, the cancer grew again after 9.2 months on the drug and 9.3 months on a dummy pill. It has never been tested on worn-out cells in a person.
Telaglenastat is a pill that blocks glutaminase, an enzyme that breaks down glutamine, a common amino acid. It is on this site because, in mice, blocking that enzyme kills worn-out cells. Worn-out cells use it to cancel out their own acid. Telaglenastat is the drug of this kind that got furthest in people, which is why it shows up on lists of clean-up drugs. Every study of it in people is a cancer study.
The main study took 444 people with kidney cancer that had spread. All got the cancer drug cabozantinib. On top of that, half got telaglenastat and half got a dummy pill. It ran in the US, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. The cancer grew again after 9.2 months with telaglenastat and 9.3 months with the dummy pill. Tumours shrank in 31 percent against 28 percent. Serious side effects hit 71 percent and 79 percent. The maker paid for it, and the authors concluded telaglenastat did not make cabozantinib work better.
A smaller study took 69 people who had already had many treatments. All got the cancer drug everolimus, plus telaglenastat or a dummy pill, with two on the drug for every one on the dummy. The bar for success was set unusually low. The cancer grew again after 3.8 months on the drug against 1.9 months. Serious side effects hit 74 percent against 61 percent. After that, the registry shows the program shrinking. A lung cancer study was stopped after 40 people, and two more combination studies were stopped. Several studies run by universities are still going.
No study of telaglenastat has measured worn-out cells, frailty or ageing. No clean-up drug has improved health in a proper study in people, and the drug of this kind with the most data in people was only tested against cancer.
How does Telaglenastat work?
Shown in people as a drug effect, and in mice as a clean-up effect. Keep the two apart. In people, telaglenastat blocks the glutaminase enzyme, which cuts a tumour's ability to use glutamine to grow. That was the reason to pair it with cancer drugs. In mice and in human cells in a dish, blocking this enzyme kills worn-out cells by taking away the ammonia they use to cancel out their acid. Nobody has shown telaglenastat clears worn-out cells in a person.
What have studies in people found about Telaglenastat?
A lot of data, from proper studies, all in cancer. Two studies against a dummy pill plus early dosing work, in several hundred people. No study in people has measured worn-out cells or ageing.
- 444 people with kidney cancer that had spread: no delay in the cancer growing again, 9.2 months on the drug against 9.3 on a dummy pill. They were also taking cabozantinib. Paid for by the maker. It missed its main goal.
- 69 people with kidney cancer, also taking everolimus: the cancer grew again after 3.8 months on the drug against 1.9 on a dummy pill. The bar for success was set low, and the result did not hold up in the bigger study.
- 27 people with kidney cancer took it with everolimus, and 13 with cabozantinib, to pick a dose. There was no comparison group.
- Serious side effects were common in both studies and in both groups. That is expected in people with advanced cancer, and worth knowing before picturing it as an anti-ageing drug.
- Registry status September 2026: a lung cancer study stopped after 40 people, a combination with talazoparib stopped after 33, and a combination with nivolumab stopped after 118. Several studies run by universities are still going, including one in high blood pressure in the lungs that is not yet recruiting.
What this does not tell you: These studies tell you what adding this enzyme blocker to cancer treatment does to cancer growth in people with advanced cancer. They do not measure worn-out cells, physical function, frailty or anything about ageing. The doses and lengths of treatment were set for cancer. A failed cancer study is not proof against the clean-up idea. It is not proof for it either.
The state of the research
Telaglenastat is on this site because it is what the glutamine clean-up idea looks like when someone actually gives it to lots of people. The result shows how the field works. The idea was proven in mice. The only drug ready for people went into cancer, because that is where the money and the clear results are. The main study missed. The company's program shrank. None of that tested the ageing idea.
The smaller study deserves its own note. It had 69 people and a low bar for success. It found the cancer took 3.8 months to grow again against 1.9, and it was described as a win. The bigger, properly sized study then found nothing. A small, loose study followed by a big study that finds nothing is a pattern this site tries to show plainly, not quote selectively.
The evidence, in charts
Fig. 1a · how many people
957people, across 3 studies in people cited here
| Study | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| JAMA Oncology 2022 | 444 | 46% |
| ClinicalTrials.gov 2026 | 444 | 46% |
| Clinical Cancer Research 2022 | 69 | 7% |
Counts are the number of people each study on this page says it signed up. That includes studies that only watched people and gave nobody the compound. 2 more studies in people give no headcount and are not counted here. Studies still signing people up are left out, and only studies cited on this page are counted.
Fig. 1b · evidence mix
5 of 6 sources here are studies in people. The rest is not.
- Study in people · done in people583%
- Animal study · done in animals117%
Counted from the list of sources on this page. It counts only what we cite, so there may be more studies out there. A review counts once, however many studies it sums up.
Fig. 2 · evidence over time
The studies cover 3 different years, 2021 to 2026, counted from the list of sources on this page.
Fig. 3 · legal status at a glance
US
Not approved
UK
Not approved
AU
Not approved
CA
Not approved
Not approved in any of the four countries shown. This is what the law says, not a verdict on the science. See Legal status below for the full text and any notes.
Fig. 4 · how much does what
Nobody has tested different amounts in people
This chart would show how the effect changes as the amount goes up. For this compound, nobody has measured that in people. So we leave it empty. We will not borrow an animal chart and pretend it works the same in people.
Fig. 5 · what the molecule is
- Kind of compound
- Small molecule
- Molecule weight
- Not on file
- Half-life
- None on file
- Chain length
- None on file
No amino acid sequence is on file for Telaglenastat, which is expected: a small molecule is not built from amino acids.
The studies we cite
- Study in people2022Efficacy and Safety of Telaglenastat Plus Cabozantinib vs Placebo Plus Cabozantinib in Patients With Advanced Renal Cell Carcinoma: The CANTATA Randomized Clinical Trial
Telaglenastat was tested properly in a large study, and it did not work. 444 adults with advanced kidney cancer took telaglenastat or a dummy pill, both along with the cancer drug cabozantinib. The cancer grew again after 9.2 months on the drug and 9.3 months on the dummy pill. Tumours shrank in 31 percent against 28 percent, the same answer. Serious side effects were common in both groups, 71 percent against 79 percent. The maker paid for it.
444 patients randomised, double blind, placebo controlled. Median progression-free survival 9.2 versus 9.3 months, hazard ratio 0.94, 95 percent confidence interval 0.74 to 1.21, P = 0.65. Overall response 31 versus 28 percent. Grade 3 to 4 adverse events in 71 versus 79 percent. Manufacturer funded. The primary endpoint was missed.
- Study in people2022Telaglenastat plus Everolimus in Advanced Renal Cell Carcinoma: A Randomized, Double-Blinded, Placebo-Controlled, Phase II ENTRATA Trial
A second, smaller study hinted at a benefit and proved nothing. 69 adults with advanced kidney cancer, most already through three treatments, got telaglenastat or a dummy pill, both along with the cancer drug everolimus. Two got the drug for every one on the dummy pill. The cancer grew again after 3.8 months against 1.9 months. One tumour shrank. The study set itself a low bar and still did not clear it cleanly. Serious side effects hit 74 percent against 61 percent. The maker paid for it.
69 patients randomised 2:1 after a median of three prior lines. Median progression-free survival 3.8 versus 1.9 months, hazard ratio 0.64, 95 percent confidence interval 0.34 to 1.20, one-sided P = 0.079 against a pre-specified one-sided alpha below 0.2. One partial response on telaglenastat. Grade 3 to 4 events 74 versus 61 percent. Manufacturer funded.
- Study in people2022Telaglenastat Plus Cabozantinib or Everolimus for Advanced or Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma: An Open-Label Phase I Trial
This study was to pick a dose, and everyone knew what they were getting. 27 adults with advanced kidney cancer took telaglenastat with everolimus, and 13 took it with cabozantinib, at rising doses. Side effects were mostly mild. There was one serious reaction with each pairing, a rash and a platelet drop. No top dose limit was reached, so 800 mg twice a day was carried forward. Tumours shrank or held steady in most patients, but with no comparison group, that means little.
Open-label phase 1 combination work that set the doses used in the randomised trials above. Human safety and dosing data, no controlled efficacy comparison.
- Study in people2026CANTATA: CB-839 With Cabozantinib vs. Cabozantinib With Placebo in Patients With Advanced Renal Cell Carcinoma
This is the registry record for the main telaglenastat study, not an extra result. Calithera Biosciences ran it in 444 people and marked it finished. Results were first posted in March 2023. It shows the same result as the published paper: the drug did no better than the dummy pill.
Calithera Biosciences, phase 2, 444 participants, status COMPLETED, results first posted March 2023. Registry record for the pivotal trial.
- Study in people2026KEAPSAKE: Telaglenastat With Standard-of-Care Chemoimmunotherapy in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
A telaglenastat study in lung cancer was stopped before it finished. 40 people had signed up when it was stopped. We checked the record was live in September 2026. Several company studies of this drug were stopped after the big kidney cancer study came back empty. The program ending is part of the evidence.
Phase 2, 40 participants enrolled, status TERMINATED, verified live September 2026. One of several company-sponsored telaglenastat trials stopped after CANTATA.
- Animal study2021Senolysis by glutaminolysis inhibition ameliorates various age-associated disorders
In mice and in human cells in a dish. Worn-out cells needed the glutaminase enzyme to survive. Blocking it in old mice killed worn-out cells and eased age-related organ problems. This is why telaglenastat shows up on lists of clean-up drugs. It is a mouse result.
Mouse and human cells. The senolytic rationale for this drug class: glutaminase 1 is required for senescent cell survival, and inhibiting it in aged mice eliminated senescent cells and improved age-associated organ dysfunction. This is why telaglenastat appears on senolytic lists. It is a mouse result.
Common questions
Has Telaglenastat been tested in people?
Yes. 513 people given it across 3 completed trials cited here, 1 of which found nothing. The only drug of its kind with proper studies in people, and those studies are in cancer. In the main one, 444 people with kidney cancer, the cancer grew again after 9.2 months on the drug and 9.3 months on a dummy pill. It has never been tested on worn-out cells in a person.
What is the Telaglenastat dosage?
No human dose established. Amounts that were given in studies sit in Human evidence on this page. None of them is a personal dose. 3 completed trials, 513 people given it
Is Telaglenastat FDA-approved?
Not approved for any use. Still investigational. Its key mid-stage study in kidney cancer missed its main goal in 2022, and several later company studies were stopped. No study for ageing or for clearing worn-out cells is registered.
Is telaglenastat a senolytic?
It blocks the glutaminase enzyme, which kills worn-out cells in mice and in human cells in a dish. Whether telaglenastat clears worn-out cells in a person has never been measured, in any study.
What happened in the CANTATA trial?
It missed its main goal. In 444 people with kidney cancer that had spread, the cancer grew again after 9.2 months on telaglenastat plus cabozantinib and 9.3 months on a dummy pill plus cabozantinib. The maker paid for the study.
Was the smaller trial positive?
It found the cancer took 3.8 months to grow again on the drug, against 1.9 months on a dummy pill. But it was small and set an unusually low bar for success. The bigger study that came next found no difference.
Could telaglenastat be repurposed for ageing?
No such study is registered. The mouse work behind the idea is strong. The work in people is all in cancer. And in those cancer studies, most people in both groups had serious side effects. That is a long way from what a drug for healthy people would need to show.