Active clinical trials for "Head and Neck Neoplasms"

This phase II trial is evaluating the efficacy of concurrent chemoradiation therapy with weekly docetaxel and cisplatin combination regimen.

The purpose of this study is to provide access to paclitaxel therapy to subjects with advanced head and neck cancer who have completed the previous late phase 2 study (CA139-388) and should have continued therapy with paclitaxel as the discretion of the investigator, and to evaluate the frequency and the severity of observed adverse reactions in treated subjects

RATIONALE: Stereotactic radiosurgery may be able to send x-rays directly to the tumor and cause less damage to normal tissue. PURPOSE: This phase I trial is studying the side effects of stereotactic radiosurgery in treating patients with locally advanced or recurrent head and neck cancer.

The purpose of this study is to estimate, with pre-specified precision, the difference in local-regional control (LRC) rate at 2 years in subjects receiving chemoradiotherapy (CRT) or panitumumab plus radiotherapy (PRT) as first line treatment for locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma for the head and neck (SCCHN). A formal hypothesis will not be tested in this trial; however, the treatment arm difference in LRC rates at 2 years will be estimated.

The primary objective of this study is to explore the efficacy of BIBW 2992 compared with cetuximab (Erbitux) in patients with metastatic or recurrent head and neck cancer after failure of platinum-containing therapy. In addition, the trial aims to clarify the influence of EGFR genotype on tumor response to the treatment regimens.

This study is being done to test whether panitumumab, in combination with chemotherapy and radiation is safe in people with head and neck cancer. Another goal of this study is to find the highest dose of the study drugs that can be given safely without causing serious sife effects. Panitumumab is a type of drug called a monoclonal antibody that has been studied in other types of cancers, such as kidney and colon. This monoclonal antibody is directed against the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). EGFR has been found on the majority of head and neck cancer cells. By blocking EGFR, this monoclonal antibody may inhibit the growth of head and neck cancer cells.

RATIONALE: Monoclonal antibodies, such as cetuximab, can block tumor growth in different ways. Some block the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Others find tumor cells and help kill them or carry tumor-killing substances to them. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as cisplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. Giving cetuximab and cisplatin together with radiation therapy may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well giving cetuximab and cisplatin together with radiation therapy works in treating patients with recurrent head and neck cancer.

This study involves two phases. Phase I of this study is designed to find out the maximum dose of paclitaxel poliglumex which can be safely given to subjects when combined with cetuximab and radiotherapy in head and neck cancer. Once the maximum safe dose of paclitaxel poliglumex is found, Phase II of the study will continue to find out whether the addition of paclitaxel poliglumex increases tumor response and survival compared to treatment with cetuximab and radiotherapy alone. An additional 20 patients have been added, to balance data. These patients must be HPV negative.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety of MGA271 when given by intravenous (IV) infusion to patients with refractory cancer. The study will also evaluate how long MGA271 stays in the blood and how long it takes for it to leave the body, what is the highest dose that can safely be given, and whether it may have an effect on tumors.

This study will test whether it is possible to introduce new genetic material into a small portion of a tumor and have the product of the new gene not only kill those tumor cells that were infected initially, but also the surrounding tumor cells as well with limited or no harm to the patient. The desired effects of this approach are achieved by focusing potent chemotherapies directly within the tumor itself and, as a result, avoiding injury to the remainder of the body. In this study, we will use two components, the first of which is a virus, known as an adenovirus, that has been crippled (i.e., it cannot make more of itself) and loaded with a bacterial gene called E. coli purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP). Adenoviruses are considered to be relatively safe vehicles for gene delivery and are presently being used in numerous human trials and therapies worldwide, including a head and neck cancer therapy approved for use outside the United States. The loaded adenovirus will be used to deliver the PNP gene directly into a tumor in patients. This gene is not expected to have an effect itself. However, the gene produces PNP inside the tumor and this protein will activate the second component of the therapy, a drug called fludarabine phosphate, which is approved by the FDA for certain types of blood-cell cancers, but has not been shown to be effective against most solid tumors. The proposed therapy gives the patient several infusions of fludarabine following the injection of the virus carrying the PNP gene and, as the fludarabine enters the tumor, it will be converted by PNP into a second compound, fluoroadenine. Numerous studies in mice and rats have shown that fluoroadenine is a very potent anti-cancer agent and that it will kill the tumor cells where it is made as well as those in the immediately surrounding area.