Active clinical trials for "Head and Neck Neoplasms"

The purpose of the investigation is to learn whether intense swallowing exercise or intense swallowing exercise coupled with electrical stimulation (E-Stim) helps patients who had head/neck cancer and currently have dysphagia swallow better.

RATIONALE: Biological therapies, such as tadalafil, may stimulate the immune system in different ways and stop tumor cells from growing. PURPOSE: This randomized clinical trial is studying how well tadalafil works in treating patients who are undergoing surgery for cancer of the oral cavity or oropharynx.

The purpose of this study is to determine the recommended dose of siltuximab monotherapy, in participants with solid malignant (cancerous) tumors (a mass in a specific area) and to estimate the clinical benefit of siltuximab monotherapy in participants with ovarian cancer and with Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (KRAS) mutant tumors.

RATIONALE: Monoclonal antibodies, such as cetuximab, can block tumor growth in different ways. Some block the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Others find tumor cells and help kill them or carry tumor-killing substances to them. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as docetaxel, cisplatin, and fluorouracil, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Giving more than one drug (combination chemotherapy) together with cetuximab may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase II clinical trial is studying how well cetuximab given together with combination chemotherapy works in treating patients with stage III or stage IV oropharynx cancer that can be removed by surgery.

To evaluate the feasibility and safety of (cohort 1) postoperative standard fractionation radiotherapy plus Iressa and of (cohort 2) hyperfractionated radiotherapy plus cisplatin and Iressa

This is a study for patients who have head and neck cancer that has recurred in the body area where they previously received radiation, and for whom surgery is not planned. A widely accepted treatment option in this situation is chemotherapy alone. Another approach that has been used in clinical trials is to treat patients with a repeat course of radiation. In these studies, some patients received chemotherapy at the same time as the radiation. In this clinical study, we wish to treat with radiation plus two drugs during the course of reirradiation, Taxotere® (docetaxel) and Erbitux® (cetuximab). Docetaxel and cetuximab both are chemotherapy drugs which are administered by vein. Both drugs help radiation kill cancer cells. The radiation will be administered using a strategy called intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), which focuses the radiation beam on the tumor. Docetaxel and cetuximab are both approved for the treatment of patients with head and neck cancer. However, the combination of radiation + docetaxel + cetuximab for patients with recurrent head and neck cancer is considered to be a topic for clinical research. The purpose of this study is to determine the good and bad effects of treatment with radiation + docetaxel + cetuximab.

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. Giving radiation therapy in higher doses over a shorter period of time may kill more tumor cells and have fewer side effects. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as cisplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Monoclonal antibodies, such as panitumumab, can block tumor growth in different ways. Some block the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Others find tumor cells and help kill them or carry tumor-killing substances to them. It is not yet known whether giving standard radiation therapy together with high-dose cisplatin is more effective than giving higher-dose radiation therapy together with panitumumab in treating patients with locally advanced head and neck cancer. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is comparing two radiation therapy regimens to see how well they work when given together with cisplatin or panitumumab in treating patients with locally advanced stage III or stage IV head and neck cancer.

RATIONALE: Giving a nutritional supplement containing arginine, omega-3 fatty acids, and nucleotides to patients undergoing chemotherapy and radiation therapy may stimulate the immune system and help the body build a stronger immune response. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well an arginine/omega-3 fatty acids/nucleotides nutritional supplement works in treating patients with stage III or stage IV head and neck cancer undergoing chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

To estimate the effect of second-line panitumumab monotherapy on objective response in patients with metastatic or recurrent squamous cell carcinoma of head and neck (SCCHN).

This phase II trial is studying the how well saracatinib works in treating patients with metastatic or recurrent head and neck cancer. Saracatinib may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth