Active clinical trials for "Carcinoma"

Amino acid deprivation therapy is an effective means for the treatment of some forms of cancer. Recently it has been found that human hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC) cell lines appear to require arginine for growth. Arginine is not an essential amino acid for human adults or infants as it can be synthesized from citrulline (for review see Rogers 1994). Therefore, selective elimination of arginine from the circulation may be a means of treating patients with metastatic melanoma or non resectable HCC. The enzyme arginine deiminase (ADI) metabolizes arginine into citrulline (Cunin 1986). However, ADI is only found in microbes and not in humans. ADI is therefore, highly immunogenic and has a short serum half-life following injection. These potential drawbacks (microbial source and thus viewed as foreign by the human immune system, and a short serum half-life) can be overcome by covalent attachment of polyethylene glycol (PEG) to argininedeiminase and termed this drug ADI-PEG 20. ADI-PEG 20 appears to be an effective anti-cancer treatment for human HCC. Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic data indicates a once a week injection of 160 IU/m2 of ADI-PEG 20 eliminates all detectable arginine from the circulation for at least 7 days. This treatment appears to be well tolerated. The purpose of this study is to determine the efficacy of this treatment in patients with HCC. Efficacy is a primary end point of this study. No patients will recieve placebo.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to compare the effectiveness of octreotide alone or with prednisone in treating patients with metastatic or recurrent thymoma.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining more than one drug may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy with suramin plus doxorubicin in treating patients with advanced solid tumors.

Evaluate anti-cancer activity (e.g. proportion of patients with confirmed complete response or partial response) in patients with advanced, inoperable biopsy-proven hepatocellular carcinoma.

Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of ixabepilone in treating patients who have progressive or metastatic urinary tract cancer. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die

This study will determine which of the two following treatment regimens provides greater benefit to patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis (gastrointestinal cancer that has spread throughout the abdomen): Surgical removal of tumors plus heated chemotherapy during surgery, followed by one dose of chemotherapy 7 to 12 days after surgery, followed 3 weeks later by 4 months of chemotherapy; or Surgical removal of tumors followed by 4 months of chemotherapy, starting 1 month after surgery. Patients 18 years of age and older with peritoneal carcinomatosis may be eligible for this study. Candidates are screened with a medical history, physical examination, and blood tests; chest X-ray and computed tomography (CT) scans; review of pathology slides; electrocardiogram (EKG), bone scan, and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), as needed; and laparotomy. Laparatomy is a surgical procedure in which an incision is made in the abdomen to look at the amount and location of tumors in the abdominal cavity. Patients whose surgery reveals that the tumors cannot be removed are taken off study. Those eligible for the study have their tumors removed during this screening laparotomy as part of the study procedure, as follows: All participants undergo laparotomy and removal of as much tumor as possible, as described above. Patients are then randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups: Group 1 - During laparotomy, after tumor removal, patients receive continuous hyperthermic peritoneal perfusion (CHPP) with the anti-cancer drug cisplatin. For CHPP, the cisplatin solution is heated and delivered to the abdomen through a catheter (plastic tube), washed through the abdomen for 90 minutes, and then drained out of the body through another catheter. At the close of surgery, a small catheter, called a Tenckhoff catheter, is left in the abdomen and brought out through the skin. Between days 7 and 12 after surgery, one dose of fluorouracil and paclitaxel chemotherapy is delivered through this catheter. The catheter is removed following complete recovery from surgery and the patient is discharged from the hospital. Four to 6 weeks after the surgery, patients have CT scans of the chest, pelvis, and abdomen, and then begin intravenous (IV, through a vein) chemotherapy with oxaliplatin, 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), and leucovorin. The chemotherapy is given in 4-week courses as follows: oxaliplatin on day 1, infused over 2 hours through a vein in the arm or neck; leucovorin on days 1 and 2, infused over 2 hours, followed by 5-fluorouracil over 22 hours; leucovorin and 5-FU repeated two weeks later on days 15 and 16. This regimen is repeated two weeks later. Between each week of chemotherapy is a week break. A course of chemotherapy consists of 28 days (two weeks of chemotherapy and two 1-week breaks). Patients may receive up to four courses (total of 16 weeks) unless their disease progresses or they cannot tolerate further doses. Doses of the chemotherapy can be reduced if the side effects are too severe. Group 2 - Patients follow the same procedure as those in Group 1 for laparotomy, CT imaging, and IV chemotherapy with oxaliplatin, 5-fluorouracil, and leucovorin. They do not receive CHPP or chemotherapy into the abdomen. All patients undergo repeat imaging tests six weeks after surgery and at the conclusion of the intravenous (IV) chemotherapy. They return for a physical examination and CT scans every three months for the first year, every four months for the next two years, and then every six months for up to five years after treatment. They are also asked to complete quality of life questionnaires before and after surgery, at the completion of chemotherapy, and at every follow-up visit.

Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of karenitecin in treating patients who have persistent or recurrent ovarian epithelial cancer or primary peritoneal cancer that has not responded to platinum-based treatment. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die.

This phase II trial is studying erlotinib to see how well it works in treating patients with persistent or recurrent cancer of the cervix. Biological therapies such as erlotinib may interfere with the growth of tumor cells and slow the growth of the tumor

Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of erlotinib in treating patients who have unresectable liver, bile duct, or gallbladder cancer. Biological therapies such as erlotinib may interfere with the growth of cancer cells and slow the growth of the tumor.

Determine whether patients receiving adjuvant HSPPC-96 treatment after surgically resected, locally advanced renal cell carcinoma have improved recurrence-free survival as compared to subjects with no adjuvant treatment.