Active clinical trials for "Neoplasms"

A DNA hypermethylation of the gene locus SHOX2 can be frequently found in lung cancer tissue. The purpose of this study is to determine whether the assessment of the hypermethylation level of SHOX2 in specimens obtained by endosonographic guided bronchoscopy makes a contribution to lung cancer staging.

Sunitinib and everolimus are two new treatments approved in 2011 for patients with pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (NETs). In addition, some traditional chemotherapies are often used to treat pancreatic NETs. Traditional chemotherapy is also known as "cytotoxic therapy" and works by killing cells that are actively dividing. There have been no studies to compare the different types of treatment. Since the patient is eligible for treatment with either sunitinib, everolimus or traditional chemotherapy it can help us identify factors that may help future patients benefit from these therapies.

This research trial studies protein expression in tissue samples from younger patients with rhabdomyosarcoma. Studying samples of tissue from patients with cancer in the laboratory may help doctors learn more about changes that occur in DNA and identify biomarkers related to cancer. It may also help doctors find better ways to treat cancer.

The collection of data regarding patient outcomes after surgical intervention creates imperative knowledge to include surgeon performance, cost analysis, base for surgical research and publication, which in turn assist surgeons to improve the standard of care utilizing evidence-based practice.

The investigators are investigating the usefulness of 18F-Fluordeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography/ Computed Tomography (18F-FDG PET/CT) for staging and follow-up of colon cancer. Furthermore, the investigators combine 18F-FDG PET findings with clinical and histopathological features, circulating tumor cell (CTC) analyses, tumor gene expression and measurements of circulating cancer biomarkers sUPAR, TIMP-1 and CEA in order to predict tumor recurrence. The investigators hypothesis: The combination of functional imaging by 18F-FDG PET/CT and pre-existing and evolving molecular biomarkers will optimize tumor characterization, staging of disease and early detection of recurrence.

The investigators' goal is to incorporate advanced imaging information into the treatment planning process and assess response in tumor, nodes and non-cancerous tissues in head and neck cancer patients during and after concurrent chemotherapy and radiation therapy (chemoRT) via biophysical, biochemical and vascular imaging using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The investigators will recruit 30 patients with locally advanced head and neck cancer into the study. All patients will obtain an advanced MRI study at three time points: 1) before the start of chemoRT, 2) 4 weeks following the start of chemoRT, and 3) 3-4 months following completion of chemoRT. MRI scans will include a) T1, T2 and T2* imaging, b) vascular images using dynamic contrast enhanced (DCE) imaging, c) biophysical microstructure images using diffusion-weighted imaging, and d) biochemical images using MR spectroscopic imaging. The subject's response (tumor, nodes and salivary and mucosal tissues) will be evaluated using clinical outcomes. Correlations will be generated between the parameters obtained from MR images and from clinical response assessments. The purpose of this study is to assess whether advanced MR imaging techniques can be used to determine tumor and node response (i) four weeks following initiation of concurrent chemoRT and (ii) after completion of chemoRT in head and neck cancer, and to assess whether advanced MR imaging techniques can be used to predict early at-risk organ function (salivary gland and mucosal injury) as measured by salivary flow and oral mucositis to chemoradiation therapy (i) four weeks following initiation of concurrent chemoRT and (ii) after completion of chemoRT in head and neck cancer.

The aim of the study is to assess the accuracy of dynamic contrast enhanced and diffusion-weighted MR Imaging in evaluating response to chemotherapy in osteosarcoma.

The incidence of colorectal cancer (CRC) is on the rise on a global scale. The number of cancer-related deaths related to CRC is also rising to an alarming level. This picture is similarly seen in Egypt where the incidence of colorectal carcinoma is increasing annually, moreover, CRC in Egypt exhibits an alarming characteristic which is the affection of much younger patients than their counterparts worldwide. Fortunately, the early detection of CRC and its precursor (adenoma) has been shown to markedly decrease morbidity and mortality related to this tumor, this has prompted the development of robust screening programs for CRC in several western countries. The implementation of a CRC screening program in Egypt has been hampered by the low compliance of the patients and the relatively high cost of colonoscopy. There is a need for an affordable, non-invasive, simple, accurate and socially accepted screening test to allow such a program to succeed in Egypt. Recent studies have shown that DNA is the future target of screening tests for several malignancies. Particularly for CRC a few preliminary studies have shown encouraging results with separate DNA methylation markers both in blood and stool. In our efforts to develop a screening test with the criteria stated above, the investigators have decided to join the forces of 2 of the largest medical centers in Egypt and the middle-east: Kasr-Alaini hospital and the National cancer institute (NCI). The investigators plan to test a panel of 7 DNA methylation markers in peripheral blood for their performance as an early marker for CRC and colorectal adenomas. Data from this study will pave the way for the development of a screening test for CRC "tailored" to the Egyptian population, moreover, it will supply essential data about the genetic alterations occurring in CRC in Egyptian patients.

The goal of this protocol is to determine the prevalence of somatic and germline mutations in BAP1 (BRCA associated protein-1) among patients with mesothelioma , choroidal nevus, primary uveal melanoma (UM), or metastatic UM seen at our institution.

Our long-term objective is to develop a new tool based on a (molecular-biology) integrated imaging technology able to characterize and categorize hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients in need of liver transplant (LT). To this end, our study aims at correlating specific imaging traits and fractional growth of individual tumors collected over a restricted time frame (T0 and at week 7 after first tumor detection), with a "molecular signature", obtained by custom microarray, histochemical and cytokine analysis. This should allow us to translate a series of purely morphologic information into a meaningful pathobiologic data sets. Validation of the integrated molecular-imaging tool will be performed prospectively by correlating the imaging-molecular data with HCC outcome in term of survival and disease-free survival after down staging procedures.