Active clinical trials for "Myelodysplastic Syndromes"

RATIONALE: Giving chemotherapy drugs and total-body irradiation before a donor stem cell helps stop the growth of cancer or abnormal cells. It may also 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. It is not yet known which combination chemotherapy regimen is most effective when given before a donor stem cell transplant in treating aplastic anemia or hematologic cancer. PURPOSE: This phase II/III trial is studying different combination chemotherapy regimens to compare how well they work when given before donor stem cell transplant in treating patients with aplastic anemia or hematologic cancer.

RATIONALE: Bone marrow that has been treated to remove certain white blood cells may be able to replace immune cells that were destroyed by chemotherapy or radiation therapy, and may reduce the chance of developing graft-versus-host disease following bone marrow transplantation. PURPOSE: Phase IV trial to study the incidence of graft-versus-host disease in patients who have hematologic cancer and who are undergoing bone marrow transplantation from a donor.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining chemotherapy with peripheral stem cell transplantation may allow the doctor to give higher doses of chemotherapy drugs and kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase I/II trial to study the effectiveness of combining docetaxel, ifosfamide, and carboplatin followed by peripheral stem cell transplantation in treating patients with refractory cancer.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy 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. White blood cells from donors may be able to kill cancer cells in patients who have hematologic cancer that has recurred following bone marrow transplantation. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy plus infusion of donated white blood cells in treating patients who have hematologic cancer that has recurred after bone marrow transplantation.

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. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of combining topotecan, fluorouracil, and leucovorin in treating patients who have advanced cancer.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop cancer cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage cancer cells. Umbilical cord blood transplantation may be able to replace cells destroyed by chemotherapy or radiation therapy. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and umbilical cord blood transplantation in treating patients who have hematologic cancer.

RATIONALE: Umbilical cord blood transplantation may be able to replace cells destroyed by chemotherapy or radiation therapy. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of umbilical cord blood transplantation in treating patients who have hematologic cancer or other hematologic or metabolic diseases.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop cancer cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. PURPOSE: Randomized phase II trial to study the effectiveness of topotecan in treating patients who have myelodysplastic syndrome.

RATIONALE: Colony-stimulating factors, such as sargramostim, may increase the number of immune cells found in bone marrow or peripheral blood. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of sargramostim after bone marrow transplantation in treating patients who have myelodysplastic syndrome.

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 bryostatin 1 in treating patients with myelodysplastic syndrome.