Active clinical trials for "Multiple Myeloma"

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of bortezomib in participants previously treated for multiple myeloma (cancer of plasma cells in bone marrow causing numerous tumors and characterized by the presence of abnormal proteins in the blood) with limited kidney function.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as pegylated liposomal doxorubicin hydrochloride and cyclophosphamide, work in different ways to stop the growth of cancer cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Bortezomib may stop the growth of cancer cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth and by blocking blood flow to the cancer. Giving pegylated liposomal doxorubicin hydrochloride together with bortezomib, cyclophosphamide, and dexamethasone may kill more cancer cells. PURPOSE: This phase I/II trial is studying the side effects of giving pegylated liposomal doxorubicin hydrochloride together with bortezomib, cyclophosphamide, and dexamethasone and to see how well it works in treating patients with multiple myeloma

The purpose of this study is to determine whether the association of ZMP is safe and provides benefits in patients with relapsed/refractory MM.

RATIONALE: A peripheral stem cell transplant or an umbilical cord blood transplant from a donor may be able to replace blood-forming cells that were destroyed by chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Giving an infusion of the donor's white blood cells (donor lymphocyte infusion) after the transplant may help destroy any remaining cancer cells (graft-versus-tumor effect). Sometimes the transplanted cells can make an immune response against the body's normal cells. Methotrexate, cyclosporine, tacrolimus, or methylprednisolone may stop this from happening. PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying how well a donor stem cell transplant or donor white blood cell infusions work in treating patients with hematologic cancer.

RATIONALE: Giving CpG 7909 after an autologous stem cell transplant may make a stronger immune response and prevent or delay the recurrence of cancer. PURPOSE: This phase I trial is studying the side effects and best dose of CpG 7909 in treating patients who have undergone autologous stem cell transplant.

The "Agricultural Health Study" (AHS) is a collaborative effort between the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health are providing support for a limited exposure assessment effort. Initial data collection on a prospective cohort of 89,658 study subjects has been completed as of December 1997. Participants completed questionnaires that included items on pesticides used, other agricultural exposures, and work practices that modify exposure as well as on other activities that may affect either exposure or disease risks (e.g., diet, exercise, alcohol consumption, medical conditions, family history of cancer, other occupations and smoking history). Phase II of the study (1998-2003) updated information on occupational exposures, diet, work practices and medical history by means of a computer assisted telephone interview. We also collected buccal cells on sample of 34,000 study participants to assess the effect of inheritable polymorphisms and the interaction of environment and genomic predisposition. The stimulus for this prospective investigation comes from the growing evidence that, despite a low mortality overall, farmers experience an excess of several cancers. These excesses have been observed in retrospective epidemiological studies among agricultural workers in several countries. Excess cancers are observed for the lymphatic and hematopoietic system, connective tissue, skin, brain, prostate, stomach and lips. Several of these tumors (brain, NHL, multiple myeloma, and prostate) are also increasing in the general population in many of these countries. This suggests a common set of exposures may explain the high rates in farmers and rising rates in the general population. Farmers, their families, and other pest control workers may have contact with a variety of potentially hazardous substances including pesticides, solvents, fuels and oils, engine exhaust, dust and zoonotic viruses and other microbes. Our cohort study includes all registered pesticide applicators in Iowa and North Carolina and the spouse of applicators who are farmers. The health effects of pesticide use are the primary focus of the study. The influence of other farm exposures are also being evaluated. The focus of the phase II follow-up period (2004-2008) is to update exposure information and health histories by means of a computer assisted interview and also following the cohort to determine disease incidence and mortality. The cohort is being followed through the cancer registries within Iowa and North Carolina, the Social Security Administration database, state vital statistics offices, National Death Index, and various in-state databases, such as the listing of registered pesticide applicators. Individuals who enrolled into the study but who are no longer at the address given during enrollment (based on subsequent attempts at follow up) have been submitted and will continue to be submitted (through NIOSH) in the standard format to the IRS under their Project 057 Taxpayer Address Request Program. Identifying data provided to the IRS include only SSN and the first four letters of last name of cohort member. IRS provides in return the most current address in IRS records if a match (SSN + all four letter of last name) is found. The purpose of this effort is to identify members of the cohort who have moved out of state, to enable adjustment of person-years for incidence and mortality calculations. Persons who have moved out of state can be followed for vital status and cause of death, but not for cancer incidence. Continuation of the protocol will provide a valuable epidemiologic resource to help prevent cancers in the future by identifying risk factors in the rural/agricultural environment. Because more cases of important cancer outcomes occur in this cohort every year, potential cancer causes can be evaluated with increased statistical power. Larger number of cases also allows for statistical control of confounding factors, making more meaningful conclusions about cancer risk, and, for some relatively infrequent cancers, such as the lyphomas and leukemias, greater follow-up time is necessary to make any meaningful observations.

The current study is being conducted to evaluate the possibility that a different schedule of bortezomib, doxorubicin HCl liposome, and dexamethasone might decrease the incidence of peripheral neuropathy yet maintain similar efficacy and allow maintenance of bortezomib dosing for a longer period.

The purpose of this study is to compare the effects (good and bad) of the medication basiliximab in combination with cyclosporine with cyclosporine alone for the prevention of graft-versus-host disease. This research is being done because there is no completely safe and effective prevention for graft-versus-host disease. It is known that cyclosporine helps with GVHD but we would like to know if the addition of basiliximab will decrease the incidence and/or severity of GVHD after a transplant known as nonmyeloablative ("mini" transplant).

Primary objective: To assess the safety of ITF 2357 administered once weekly at high pulse dose in patients with relapsing/refractory multiple myeloma. Secondary objectives: To evaluate the anti-tumour activity of ITF 2357 administered once weekly at high pulse dose in patients with advanced multiple myeloma, measured as decrease of M protein. To assess the therapeutic response to ITF3257 according to EBMT criteria. To determine pharmacokinetic profile of ITF 2357 administered following high pulse dose schedule.

This study will test the ability of a specially designed monoclonal antibody to destroy multiple myeloma cells. This antibody is unique in its ability to promote the death of multiple myeloma cells by processes known as antibody dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC)and complement dependent cytotoxicity (CDC). The study is designed to determine both the optimal dose of the antibody to destroy multiple myeloma cells and frequency of dosing.