Active clinical trials for "Brain Neoplasms"

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. Gefitinib may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as temozolomide, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Giving radiation therapy together with either gefitinib or temozolomide may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This randomized phase II trial is studying how well giving radiation therapy together with either gefitinib or temozolomide works in treating patients with non-small cell lung cancer and brain metastases.

RATIONALE: Talabostat may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as temozolomide 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 talabostat together with temozolomide or carboplatin may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase I trial is studying the side effects and best dose of talabostat when given together with temozolomide or carboplatin in treating young patients with relapsed or refractory brain tumors or other solid tumors.

Background: Radiation therapy with temozolomide (an anti-cancer drug) is standard therapy for treating brain tumors called glioblastomas. The drug valproic acid, currently approved for treating seizures, has been shown in laboratory tests to increase the radiosensitivity of glioma cells. Objectives: -To determine the effectiveness of adding valproic acid to standard treatment with radiation therapy and temozolomide for treating glioblastoma. Eligibility: -Patients 18 years of age and older with glioblastoma multiforme who have not been previously treated with chemotherapy of radiation. Design: This Phase II trial will enroll 41 patients. Patients will receive radiation therapy to the brain once a day, Monday through Friday, for 6 1/2 weeks. Patients will take temozolomide once a day by mouth, Monday through Friday, during the period of radiation treatment. Starting 4 weeks after radiation therapy, patients will take temozolomide once a day for 5 days every 28 days for a total of six cycles. Patients will receive valproic acid by mouth twice a day beginning 1 week prior to the first day of radiation therapy and continuing until the completion of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Patients will have follow-up visits 1 month after completing therapy, then every 3 months for 2 years, and then every 6 months for 3 years. Follow-up includes a physical examination, blood tests and magnetic resonance imaging of the brain.

This phase II trial studies how well dasatinib works in treating patients with glioblastoma multiforme or gliosarcoma that has come back. Dasatinib may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as irinotecan, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. Irinotecan may make tumor cells more sensitive to radiation therapy. Giving irinotecan together with whole-brain radiation therapy may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase I/II trial is studying the side effects and best dose of irinotecan when given together with whole-brain radiation therapy and to see how well they work in treating patients with brain metastases from solid tumors. (The study of side effects and best dose has ended as of 4/15/05)

This study seeks to define the tolerability and safety associated with the administration of Dronabinol in the treatment of adults with nausea, vomiting and appetite loss in patients with primary gliomas who are undergoing chemotherapy treatment. The study will also describe the effect of Dronabinol on the quality of life in terms of nausea, vomiting and anorexia in this patient group.

The current prognosis for patients with metastatic brain cancer from NSCLC is very poor. The current standard treatment for this disease is radiation therapy to the brain. The goal of the current study is to test whether the combination of orally administered HYCAMTIN capsules and whole brain radiation therapy will prolong the survival time of patients with this potentially serious condition.

The aim of this study is to evaluate non-inferiority of salvage stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) in the patients who received surgical resection for brain metastases in comparison with postoperative whole brain radiation therapy (WBRT).

RATIONALE: Current therapies for adults with primary malignant brain tumors that have not responded to standard therapy provide very limited benefit to the patient. The anti-cancer properties of Antineoplaston therapy suggest that it may prove beneficial in the treatment of adults with primary malignant brain tumors that have not responded to standard therapy. PURPOSE: This study is being performed to determine the effects (good and bad) that Antineoplaston therapy has on adults with primary malignant brain tumors that have not responded to standard therapy.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so that they stop growing or die. bone marrow transplantation and peripheral stem cell transplantation may allow the doctor to give higher doses of chemotherapy drugs and kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy followed by bone marrow transplantation and/or peripheral stem cell transplantation in treating patients who have recurrent medulloblastoma or CNS germ cell tumors.