Active clinical trials for "Graft vs Host Disease"

Background: - Oral graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is a possible complication of bone marrow transplants. It is the result of the donor cells trying to attack the recipients body. Symptoms include dry mouth, sensitivity and pain when tasting certain spices and flavors, and painful swallowing. Steroids are a possible effective treatment for GHVD, but they can cause side effects when given as pills or injections. Steroids given in a cream or rinse form, applied directly to the site of the symptoms, can have fewer side effects. However, their effectiveness as a rinse has not been tested in the mouth. Researchers want to see if a steroid called clobetasol can be used as a mouth rinse to treat oral GHVD. Objectives: - To see if a clobetasol rinse is a safe and effective treatment for oral graft-versus-host disease. Eligibility: - Individuals at least 12 years of age who have oral GHVD and are not allergic to clobetasol. Design: Participants will be screened with a physical exam and medical history. Blood and urine samples will be collected. They will also have an oral exam, a mouth tissue biopsy, and other tests before starting the study drug. Participants will be separated into two groups. One group will receive clobetasol; the other will have a placebo liquid. Participants will rinse their mouths with the study liquid three times a day after meals for 2 weeks. After 2 weeks, participants will have another study visit with blood tests and other exams. After the study visit, all participants will start to use the clobetasol rinse. Those who originally had clobetasol will use the rinse for another 2 weeks. Those who originally had a placebo will use the rinse for 4 weeks. Participants will have a follow-up exam after the end of treatment....

Background: - Pomalidomide is a drug that alters the body's immune response. It may help people who have chronic graft-versus-host disease (GvHD). GvHD may appear after a stem cell transplant, when immune cells in the transplant try to attack tissues in the person who received the transplant. GvHD is not easy to treat, and often does not respond to standard treatments. Researchers want to see if pomalidomide is a safe and effective treatment for GvHD. Objectives: - To test the safety and effectiveness of pomalidomide for GvHD that has not responded to standard treatments. Eligibility: - Individuals at least 18 years of age who have GvHD that has not responded to standard treatments. Design: Participants will be screened with a physical exam and medical history. Blood and urine samples will also be collected. A lung function test and imaging studies will also be given. Participants will take pomalidomide capsules once a day for 4-week periods called cycles. Treatment will be monitored with frequent blood tests and imaging studies. Saliva samples and skin and mouth tissue biopsies will also be collected during treatment. Treatment will continue for six cycles (6 months), unless the GvHD gets worse or side effects are too severe. If the GvHD has improved at the end of the six cycles, participants may be able to continue to take pomalidomide for up to six more cycles.

To study the safety and side effects of Ofatumumab in the treatment of chronic graft-versus-host disease (GvHD). This study will also evaluate effectiveness of Ofatumumab when added to standard steroid treatment for chronic graft-versus-host disease

This phase II trial studies how well cyclophosphamide works in preventing chronic graft-versus-host disease after allogeneic peripheral blood stem cell transplant in patients with hematological malignancies. Giving chemotherapy and total-body irradiation before transplantation helps stop the growth of cancer cells and prevents the patient's immune system from rejecting the donor's stem cells. Healthy stem cells from a donor that are infused into the patient help the patient's bone marrow make blood cells; red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Sometimes, however, the transplanted donor cells can cause an immune response against the body's normal cells, which is called graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). Giving cyclophosphamide after transplant may prevent this from happening or may make chronic GVHD less severe.

The main purpose of this trial is to assess the safety and feasibility of treatment with two-dose infusion of allogeneic mesenchymal stem cells from adipose tissue expanded in vitro in patients undergoing haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT, who have developed chronic and extensive graft versus host disease (GVHD). Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) express low levels of HLA class I molecules, and do not express class II molecules neither CD40, CD80 and CD86, being unable to induce proliferation of allogeneic lymphocytes. In addition, MSCs inhibit lymphocyte proliferation by inhibiting cell division and maintaining these cells in a quiescent state. This supports the hypothesis that MSCs are universal suppressors.

The goal of this clinical research study is to learn if cyclophosphamide given after busulfan and fludarabine can help to prevent graft versus host disease (GVHD - a condition in which transplanted tissue attacks the body into which it is transplanted) in patients receiving a stem cell transplant. The safety of this drug combination will also be studied.

For numerous malignant diseases allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is the only curative therapy. One of the major complications is the occurrence of acute graft-versus-host-disease (aGVHD). Thirty to eighty percent of patients after HSCT develop aGVHD despite the prophylactic application of different immunosuppressive drugs. The response rates to the conventional first line treatment are only 15-35%4. In case of a steroid refractory aGVHD different therapeutic strategies have been evaluated, but with no satisfactory results so far. The mortality of patients suffering from steroid refractory aGVHD remains at 75-80%. Therefore, it remains important to search for new therapeutical strategies for the treatment of aGVHD.

The purpose of this research study is to determine the effectiveness of bortezomib (Velcade) plus prednisone for treating chronic graft versus host disease (cGVHD) and the safety of this drug combination in this patient population. Chronic GVHD is a medical condition that may occur after allogeneic stem cell transplantation. The donor's immune system may recognize the participants body (the host) as foreign and attempt to "reject" it. Bortezomib has been used in other research studies, and information from those studies suggests that this drug may help to control the abnormal immune responses that underlie cGVHD.

This is a clinical trial to see if treatment with etanercept for early skin graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) can effectively treat and prevent progression of the disease without using high dose steroids. GVHD is a common complication following a bone marrow transplant from another donor. GVHD occurs after transplant, when the donor's blood cells (called lymphocytes) recognize parts of your body, such as the skin, as foreign. A certain chemical, called Tumor Necrosis Factor, or TNF, also causes damage to the skin. The main effect on the skin is a red rash, when the skin GVHD is mild, but in more severe forms the skin can blister. We have been studying GVHD at the University of Michigan for the past decade. We know that high levels of TNF makes GVHD worse. Our research has shown that adding an anti-TNF drug (called etanercept or Enbrel®) to the standard GVHD treatment of high dose steroids leads to improvement in the GVHD in twice as many patients compared to when steroids alone are used. It is now standard practice at the University of Michigan and many other centers to treat GVHD with both steroids and etanercept. The management of early skin GVHD for most patients involves treatment with steroids, given both as a cream and by either the mouth (in pills) or IV. Early skin GVHD is also called grade I GVHD, which means the skin rash covers less than half of the body. Steroid treatment can be effective; however, it also causes many complications such as an increased risk of infection, weight gain, stomach ulcers, muscle weakness and bone damage, among many others. We have developed this study to test whether starting treatment with etanercept and steroid creams alone can treat the GVHD without requiring the use of high dose steroids. The goal is to avoid the complications that come with high dose oral or IV steroid treatment. The high dose steroid treatment would only begin if your GVHD got worse.

Severe dry eye is a debilitating ocular disease resulting in loss of vision, reduced day-to-day function and significant discomfort. Tear substitutes are an important part of the treatment of all patients, however, even with aggressive us, the corneal(ocular)surface often remains very irregular due to poor surface healing. The agent being evaluated in this study, Thymosin Beta 4, promotes healing of the corneal surface and has been studied in patients with recalcitrant corneal ulcers and erosions with significant success (Arch Ophthalmol. 2010;128(5):636-638., Ann of the NY Acad of Sci, May, 2010). The study hypothesis is that Thymosin Beta 4, in its role as a modulator of corneal surface healing, may be able to promote healing of the corneal surface allowing for more conventional modalities to take over and maintain a smooth and regular ocular surface. The investigators hope to be able to demonstrate an improvement in visual acuity, surface healing and a reduction in dry-eye related symptoms.