Active clinical trials for "Melanoma"

The purpose of this clinical trial is to determine if Allovectin-7®, an experimental gene-based immunotherapy, can shrink melanoma tumors. The trial will also examine if this treatment can improve the time to disease progression.

RATIONALE: Biological therapies use different ways to stimulate the immune system and stop cancer cells from growing. Combining different types of biological therapies may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of biological therapy following surgery in treating patients who have stage III or stage IV melanoma.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. PURPOSE: This phase I trial is studying the side effects and best dose of 17-N-allylamino-17-demethoxygeldanamycin in treating patients with refractory advanced solid tumors or hematologic cancers.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Injecting allovectin-7 into a person's melanoma cells may make the body build an immune response that will kill tumor cells. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of dacarbazine with or without immunotherapy in treating patients who have stage III or stage IV melanoma.

RATIONALE: Vaccines made from a person's white blood cells and melanoma cells may make the body build an immune response and kill the tumor cells. PURPOSE: Randomized phase I/II trial to study the effectiveness of vaccine therapy made from white blood cells and melanoma cells in treating patients with metastatic melanoma who are undergoing surgery for lymph node and tumor removal.

Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of hyperthermic isolated limb perfusion of melphalan with or without tumor necrosis factor in treating patients who have locally advanced melanoma of the arm or leg. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Heating melphalan to several degrees above body temperature and infusing it only to the area around the tumor may kill more tumor cells. It is not yet known whether combining melphalan with tumor necrosis factor is more effective than melphalan alone in treating melanoma.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as everolimus, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Everolimus may also stop the growth of melanoma by blocking blood flow to the tumor. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well everolimus works in treating patients with stage IV melanoma.

RATIONALE: Vaccines made from a person's white blood cells and a donor's tumor cells may help the body build an effective immune response to kill tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well vaccine therapy works in treating patients with unresected stage III or stage IV melanoma.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Peripheral stem cell transplantation may be able to replace immune cells that were destroyed by chemotherapy used to kill tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of chemotherapy plus peripheral stem cell transplantation in treating patients who have metastatic kidney cancer or melanoma.

Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of vaccine therapy in treating patients who have unresectable metastatic melanoma. Vaccines may make the body build an immune response to kill tumor cells.