Active clinical trials for "Lymphoma"

RATIONALE: Giving chemotherapy drugs, such as fludarabine and cyclophosphamide, before a donor peripheral blood stem cell transplant helps stop the growth of cancer cells. It also helps stop the patient's immune system from rejecting the donor's stem cells. When the healthy stem cells from a donor are infused into the patient they may help the patient's bone marrow make stem cells, red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well fludarabine and cyclophosphamide followed by peripheral stem cell transplant works in treating patients with leukemia or lymphoma.

This study will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of an experimental cancer vaccine for mantle cell lymphoma a form of cancer of the white blood cells called lymphocytes. Although standard treatments for lymphoma may achieve disease remission, none provides a cure. Patients with mantle cell lymphoma 18 years and older who have not been treated previously with chemotherapy may participate in this study. Candidates will be screened for eligibility with a medical history and physical examination. Other tests that may be required include blood and urine tests; lung function studies; imaging tests such as magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography and X-rays; and biopsy (surgical removal of a small tissue sample) of tumor, bone marrow, or other tissue. Patients enrolled in the study will begin treatment with chemotherapy designed to reduce disease to a minimum that is, to achieve remission or shrink the tumor as much as possible. Chemotherapy will be administered on an outpatient basis over a period of around 12 to 18 weeks in 3-week cycles as follows: prednisone by mouth on days 1 through 5; etoposide, doxorubicin and vincristine intravenously through (a vein) on days 1 through 5; and cyclophosphamide intravenously on day 5. Starting day 6, patients receive no chemotherapy for 16 days. In addition, an antibody called rituximab, which attaches to lymphoma cells and may increase the effectiveness of the chemotherapy, will be given on day 1 of the cycle. Patients will also receive a protein called granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) starting day 6 of the cycle and continuing until the white blood cell count recovers or until day 19. G-CSF is naturally produced by bone marrow and may boost the immune system. The chemotherapy drugs and rituximab are infused through a vein by means of a lightweight portable pump, which patients are taught how to use. Patients are also how taught how to give themselves G-CSF injections under the skin, similar to insulin injections. The first vaccination will be given at least 3 months after chemotherapy ends and will be repeated every 4 weeks for a maximum of 5 vaccinations. The vaccinations will be given in the clinic. Patients will also receive daily injections of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), a growth factor naturally produced by bone marrow that can boost the immune system. These injections will be given the day of the vaccination and for the next 3 days. When vaccine therapy is completed, patients who were treated successfully will be followed with periodic clinic visits for follow-up examinations and tests. Patients in whom the lymphoma did not disappear entirely or who have a recurrence of disease will be advised of further treatment possibilities....

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. It is not yet known which combination chemotherapy regimen is more effective for treating anaplastic large cell lymphoma. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is studying several different regimens of combination chemotherapy to compare how well they work in treating children with anaplastic large cell lymphoma.

RATIONALE: Monoclonal antibodies can locate tumor cells and either kill them or deliver tumor-killing substances to them without harming normal cells. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of monoclonal antibody therapy in treating patients who have advanced or recurrent lymphoma.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop cancer cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Monoclonal antibodies, such as rituximab, can locate tumor cells and either kill them or deliver tumor-killing substances to them without harming normal cells. Combining chemotherapy with monoclonal antibody therapy may kill more cancer cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of combining pentostatin, cyclophosphamide, and rituximab in treating patients who have chronic lymphocytic leukemia or other B-cell cancers that have been treated previously.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy and hormone therapy 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: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of fludarabine plus octreotide in treating patients who have relapsed low-grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of perillyl alcohol in treating patients with refractory cancer. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die.

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 effects of cladribine in previously treated or untreated patients with mantle cell lymphoma.

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 etoposide in treating patients with relapsed non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Major improvements in the treatment of childhood non-lymphoblastic lymphomas have taken place in the last ten years. Though the survival rate in low risk patients (i.e., those with stage I & II disease and serum LDH of less than 350 IU/dL) was as high as 90% with the previous Pediatric Branch protocol, only 32% of patients in the high risk group achieved long term remission. The present protocol is designed to improve survival in the high risk group by using alternating non-cross resistant drug regimens. We plan to determine whether using granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) in this group would increase dose-intensity and ameliorate myelotoxicity. We also plan to study the effect on survival of decreasing the duration of treatment to three months from the present year-long therapy in low-risk patients.