Active clinical trials for "Liver Neoplasms"

The purpose of this research study is to determine if sorafenib improves the effectiveness of a procedure called radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for the treatment of hepatocellular cancer (HCC). Radiofrequency ablation has been used to treat many types of tumors, including hepatocellular cancers. During RFA a needle is inserted into the tumor tissue and heat is used to kill the tumor cells. Sorafenib has been approved by the FDA for the treatment of hepatocellular cancer that cannot be treated with surgery. Pre-clinical data suggests that sorafenib may improve the efficacy of RFA.

The purpose of this study is to determine if Brivanib is an effective treatment for liver cancer in patients who have failed or could not take Sorafenib

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as irinotecan, fluorouracil, and leucovorin, 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) may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase I trial is studying the side effects and best dose of irinotecan when given together with fluorouracil and leucovorin in treating patients with advanced gastrointestinal cancer.

Hepatocellular cancer, one of the world's most deadly tumors, is associated with chronic liver injury and cirrhosis. With the increasing occurrence of viral hepatitis, the incidence of this cancer in the United States continues to rise. Surgical resection offers the only hope for cure; but sadly, few patients are candidates for surgery due to their liver disease. Liver transplant can be an effective treatment, but due to a scarcity of organs, most patients do not qualify for this therapy either. Patients who are not candidates for these procedures have very few therapeutic options as chemotherapy and radiation have little efficacy. New therapies are desperately needed. Opioid Growth Factor (OGF) inhibits the growth of a number of cancer lines in vitro by a receptor-mediated mechanism. In pancreatic cancer this phenomenon has been well defined not only in vitro but in animal models. Based upon these findings, a phase I trial has been conducted demonstrating that OGF can be administered safely to patients with pancreatic cancer. The investigators hypothesize that administration of OGF will inhibit the course of cancer progression in human subjects with unresectable hepatocellular cancer and cirrhosis. As a first step in testing this hypothesis, the investigators propose a phase I trial to study the toxicity and pharmacokinetics of this therapy in patients suffering from inoperable hepatocellular cancer and cirrhosis.

This phase I trial studies the side effects and best dose of dasatinib in treating patients with solid tumors or lymphomas that are metastatic or cannot be removed by surgery. Dasatinib may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth.

This phase I trial is studying the side effects and best dose of erlotinib hydrochloride when given together with cetuximab and to see how well they work in treating patients with advanced gastrointestinal cancer, head and neck cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, or colorectal cancer. Erlotinib hydrochloride may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth. 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. Erlotinib hydrochloride and cetuximab may also stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking blood flow to the tumor. Giving erlotinib hydrochloride together with cetuximab may kill more tumor cells.

Besides liver transplantation, the curative treatment of primary hepatic cancer with cirrhosis remains the surgical resection. Radiofrequency or cryotherapy currently allow local ablation of small cancer, with very good results. However, all these treatments are followed by high rates of recurrence (50 - 70% at 5 years). Then, it seems essential to associate to the surgical resection or to the local ablation as "adjuvant" treatment, in order to prevent or to decrease the rate of recurrence. However, no evidence supports this attitude. Therefore, following curative treatment of primary hepatic cancer with cirrhosis, we propose to compare treated to untreated patients. Postoperative treatment means either intra-arterial chemotherapy or systemic chemotherapy. The main criterion of the study is time of survival without recurrence. The main secondary objective is the safety.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as capecitabine, epirubicin, and carboplatin, 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) may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase I trial is studying the side effects and best dose of capecitabine when given together with epirubicin and carboplatin in treating patients with progressive, unresectable, or metastatic cancer.

The purpose of this study is to determine if the, MR guided, laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) treatment technique can be safety and efficiently used for the human liver metastasis

To determine the depth of coagulation which is possible in human liver tissue using the saline linked RF Surface ablation with the Tissue Link floating ball. To determine the efficacy of the technique on surface liver tumors using saline linked RF surface ablati To determine a safe (non-popping upper limit) of power per area that will permit a 1 cm depth of tissue destruction without inflow occlusion an da 2 cm depth with inflow occlusion.