Active clinical trials for "Neoplasm Metastasis"

Malignant brain tumors are responsible for a significant amount of deaths in children and adults. Even with advances in surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy, many patients diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor survive only months to weeks. In an attempt to improve the prognosis for these patients, researchers have developed a new approach to brain tumor therapy. This approach makes use of DNA technology to transfer genes sensitive to therapy into the cells of the tumor. Infections with the herpes simplex virus can cause cold sores in the area of the mouth. A drug called ganciclovir (Cytovene) can kill the virus. Ganciclovir is effective because the herpes virus contains a gene (Herpes-Thymidine Kinase TK gene) that is sensitive to the drug. Researchers have been able to separate this gene from the virus. Using DNA technology, researchers hope to transfer and implant the TK gene into tumor cells making them sensitive to ganciclovir. In theory, giving patients ganciclovir will kill all tumor cells that have the TK gene incorporated into them.

This study is designed to evaluate the efficacy of high dose melphalan and autologous bone marrow transplantation given as consolidation therapy to patients with inflammatory or metastatic carcinoma of the breast in complete remission. All patients entered will receive induction therapy with cyclophosphamide, adriamycin, methotrexate and 5-fluorouracil with hormonal synchronization utilizing tamoxifen and premarin as in a previous Medicine Branch protocol (MB-160C). Among patients with inflammatory carcinoma of the breast, pathologic complete responders will receive irradiation to the breast and regional lymph nodes; convertible partial responders and clinical complete responders with residual disease on biopsy will undergo surgical resection of bulk disease followed by irradiation of the chest wall and regional lymph nodes excluding the axilla. Both groups of responders will be randomized to receive either systemic consolidation therapy with high dose melphalan (180 mg/M2 total dose over 3 days) and autologous bone marrow transplantation followed by maintenance therapy or maintenance therapy alone. Complete responders in this noninflammatory group will not receive further therapy since, historically, they have done well following induction and local therapy, with maintenance therapy alone. Patients with metastatic breast cancer will be assessed for response throughout induction therapy. Complete and convertable partial responders will receive consolidative therapy and be randomized to ABMT followed by 6 months of maintenance therapy vs. maintenance alone.

The purpose of this study is to see if capecitabine can be taken safely with different doses of lapatinib in patients with HER-2 positive breast cancer involving brain (brain metastases) and/or in spinal fluid (leptomeningeal disease).

SSC-CIP is increasing in patients after critical illness. Pathogenesis is still largely unclear. The investigators hypothesize that genetic variants of biliary transporter genes are frequent in patients with SSC-CIP. In approximately 140 patients and controls the rate of genetic variants in biliary transporter genes, gut permeability and gut microbiome as well as bone health will be studied.

The purpose of this study is to find out whether giving one higher dose of radiation is as good at treating the tumor in the patient's spine after surgery as giving three lower doses of radiation.

The vertebral column represents the most common bony site for metastasis with an incidence ranged from 30% to 70% in patients with metastatic neoplasms. The dorsal spine carries the highest frequent site for metastasis all over the vertebral column followed by the lumber spine. These metastatic lesions are clinical entities that often necessitate a complex spinal decompression and anterior reconstruction. Posterolateral approaches alone allow for excellent decompression with transpedicular fixation and safe visualization of the neural elements for corpectomy and reconstruction so the investigators can avoid the complications that can be happened with the staged surgery. Purpose: investigators' aim in the study is to report cases and evaluate investigators' approach for fixation and assess the postoperative period regarding pain improvement and neurological deficit.

This clinical trial was designed to investigate the efficiency and toxicity of tomotherapy for leptomeningeal metastases.

The overall project aim is to study risk and outcomes following thoracic surgery by cross-linking high-quality national Swedish health-data registers for population-based investigations of individual level clinically relevant patient data.

The disability inflected by dystonia encouraged the development of many neurosurgical procedures. This is a prospective study included 120 patients suffering from intractable secondary dystonia. They were subjected to different neurosurgical treatments and were assessed through the follow up period

The overall aim and primary outcome of this study will be a descriptive analysis of the current treatment practice of BM in Norway. Specifically, it may give answers to the following research questions: What is the true incidence of BM in Norway? How are patients with BM treated at present? Do treatments differ between hospitals? How do treatments impact quality of life of the patients? Which factors (treatment, tumor and host variables) can explain disease control, survival, symptom relief, and general functions? How can BM staging be improved?