Active clinical trials for "Central Nervous System Neoplasms"

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 combining temozolomide and O6-benzylguanine in treating patients who have newly diagnosed, recurrent, or progressive anaplastic glioma.

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 study the effectiveness of fenretinide in treating patients who have recurrent malignant glioma.

RATIONALE: Dalteparin may stop the growth of cancer by stopping blood flow to the tumor and by blocking the enzymes necessary for tumor cell growth. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. Combining dalteparin with radiation therapy may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of combining dalteparin with radiation therapy in treating patients who have newly diagnosed supratentorial glioblastoma multiforme.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy work in different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. Irinotecan may make the tumor cells more sensitive to radiation therapy. PURPOSE: This phase I/II trial is studying the side effects of irinotecan given together with radiation therapy followed by irinotecan and carmustine and to see how well it works in treating patients with newly-diagnosed glioblastoma multiforme.

RATIONALE: Biological therapies such as gefitinib may interfere with the growth of cancer cells and slow the growth of the tumor. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining gefitinib with chemotherapy may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of combining gefitinib with temozolomide in treating patients who have malignant primary glioma.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop cancer cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining more than one drug may kill more cancer cells. PURPOSE: This phase I trial is studying the side effects and best dose of carboxyamidotriazole and paclitaxel in treating patients with advanced solid tumors or refractory lymphomas.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop cancer cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of intrathecal or intraventricular topotecan in treating recurrent, progressive, or refractory cancer that is metastatic to the lining around the brain.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy such as talampanel use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well talampanel works in treating patients with recurrent, progressive high-grade glioma.

RATIONALE: Radioimmunotherapy uses radiolabeled monoclonal antibodies to locate tumor cells and deliver radioactive tumor-killing substances to them without harming normal cells. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining intrathecal radioimmunotherapy and radiation therapy with combination chemotherapy may kill any tumor cells remaining after surgery. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of combining intrathecal radioimmunotherapy and radiation therapy with combination chemotherapy in treating patients who have undergone surgery for medulloblastoma.

RATIONALE: Imatinib mesylate may interfere with the growth of tumor cells and may be an effective treatment for recurrent glioma and meningioma. PURPOSE: Phase I/II trial to study the effectiveness of imatinib mesylate in treating patients who have progressive, recurrent, or unresectable malignant glioma or meningioma.