Active clinical trials for "Pancreatic Neoplasms"

Background: The National Cancer Institute (NCI) Surgery Branch has developed an experimental therapy for treating patients with metastatic cancer that involves taking white blood cells from the patient, growing them in the laboratory in large numbers, genetically modifying these specific cells with a type of virus (retrovirus) to attack only the tumor cells, and then giving the cells back to the patient. This type of therapy is called gene transfer. In this protocol, we are modifying the patients white blood cells with a retrovirus that has the gene for anti-mesothelin incorporated in the retrovirus. Objective: The purpose of this study is to determine a safe number of these cells to infuse and to see if these tumor fighting cells (anti-mesothelin cells) cause metastatic cancer tumors to shrink. Eligibility: - Adults age 18-70 with metastatic cancer expressing the mesothelin molecule. Design: Work up stage: Patients will be seen as an outpatient at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) clinical Center and undergo a history and physical examination, scans, x-rays, lab tests, and other tests as needed Leukapheresis: If the patients meet all of the requirements for the study they will undergo leukapheresis to obtain white blood cells to make the anti-mesothelin cells. {Leukapheresis is a common procedure, which removes only the white blood cells from the patient.} Treatment: Once their cells have grown, the patients will be admitted to the hospital for the conditioning chemotherapy, the anti-mesothelin cells, and aldesleukin. They will stay in the hospital for about 4 weeks for the treatment. Follow up: Patients will return to the clinic for a physical exam, review of side effects, lab tests, and scans about every 1-3 months for the first year, and then every 6 months to 1 year as long as their tumors are shrinking. Follow up visits will take up to 2 days.

Purpose of this phase I/II study is to test how well LY2090314 works in combination with different chemotherapies in treating participants with metastatic pancreatic cancer.

The investigators recently completed a phase I study of intravenous ascorbic acid (IV AA) plus standard chemotherapy (gemcitabine and erlotinib) in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer. The investigators determined that the target ceiling dosage of 100 grams of ascorbic acid is safe when given with the chemotherapy. This Phase II trial is an initial test of efficacy of the 100 gram dose of ascorbic acid, which will be given with the same standard chemotherapy. This open label study will recruit up to 35 subjects with metastatic pancreatic cancer who will receive ascorbic acid combined with gemcitabine and erlotinib as front-line treatment. The phase I data suggests that ascorbic acid when given in combination with gemcitabine and erlotinib may result in some tumor response, and the goal of this study is to better evaluate the response and confirm initial safety data

Study Hypothesis: To estimate time to recurrence in pancreatic cancer patients treated with adjuvant erlotinib and gemcitabine. Combination therapy will be given for 4 months followed by single agent erlotinib for a total of 12 months.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as gemcitabine, use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Mistletoe may slow the growth of tumor cells and may be an effective treatment for solid tumors. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of combining gemcitabine with mistletoe in treating patients who have advanced solid tumors.

Rational: White blood cells that have been treated with carcinoembryonic antigen peptide-1 may help the body build an immune response to and kill tumor cells that express CEA. Purpose: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of white blood cells plus carcinoembryonic antigen peptide-1 in treating patients with stage I, stage II, or stage III pancreatic cancer that has been surgically removed.

Current therapies for Stage IV Pancreatic Cancer provide very limited benefit to the patient. The anti-cancer properties of Antineoplaston therapy suggest that it may prove beneficial in the treatment of Stage IV Pancreatic Cancer. PURPOSE: This study is being performed to determine the effects (good and bad) that Antineoplaston therapy has on patients with Stage IV Pancreatic Cancer.

RATIONALE: Vaccines may make the body build an immune response to kill tumor cells. PURPOSE: Randomized phase II trial to compare the effectiveness of two different vaccines in treating patients who have cancer of the gastrointestinal tract.

This is a dose-seeking study that will test the safety of increasing doses of Rexin-G, given intravenously, in patients with advanced or metastatic pancreatic cancer who have failed standard chemotherapy. Rexin-G is a tumor-targeted gene therapy vector that contains a "killer" gene that blocks the action of the human cyclin G1 gene. Cyclin G1 is a cell cycle control element that plays an important role in cancer growth. When injected into a vein, the Rexin-GTM vector seeks out and accumulates in cancerous tumors, therefore, increasing the concentration of the drug in the cancerous tumors and not in normal neighbouring organs.

Detection of Colorectal and Pancreatic Cancers Using Breath Analysis - Feasibility Study