Active clinical trials for "Nervous System Neoplasms"

RATIONALE: Bortezomib may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth and by blocking blood flow to the tumor. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as temozolomide, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Giving bortezomib together with temozolomide may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase I trial is studying the side effects and best dose of bortezomib when given together with temozolomide in treating patients with brain tumors or other solid tumors that have not responded to treatment.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as temozolomide, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Collecting fluid samples through a catheter may help doctors find out how well temozolomide spreads throughout the brain. PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying temozolomide in treating patients with primary brain tumors or metastatic brain tumors.

RATIONALE: Collecting fluid from a brain tumor using a small catheter may help doctors learn how much methotrexate gets into the tumor to kill the tumor cells. It may also help doctors learn how methotrexate works in the brain and in the rest of the body. PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying how much methotrexate gets into the brain tumor by collecting fluid directly from the tumor through a small catheter in patients undergoing stereotactic biopsy for recurrent high-grade glioma.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy work in different ways to stop the growth of cancer cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Monoclonal antibodies, such as rituximab, can block cancer growth in different ways. Some block the ability of cancer cells to grow and spread. Others find cancer cells and help kill them or carry cancer-killing substances to them. Giving rituximab together with combination chemotherapy may kill more cancer cells. PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying the side effects and best ways to give combination chemotherapy together with rituximab in treating patients with newly diagnosed primary CNS lymphoma.

RATIONALE: Erlotinib and sirolimus may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth. PURPOSE: This phase I/II trial is studying the side effects and best dose of erlotinib when given together with sirolimus and to see how well they work in treating patients with recurrent malignant glioma.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as temozolomide, busulfan, and O6-benzylguanine, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Giving more than one drug (combination chemotherapy) may kill more tumor cells. O6-benzylguanine may also help temozolomide work better by making tumor cells more sensitive to the drug. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. Giving chemotherapy with a peripheral stem cell transplant or bone marrow transplant, using stem cells from the patient that are genetically-modified in the laboratory to protect them from the side effects of chemotherapy, may allow more chemotherapy to be given so that more tumor cells are killed. Giving combination chemotherapy and radiation therapy together with a peripheral stem cell transplant or bone marrow transplant may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying how well giving combination chemotherapy together with radiation therapy works in treating younger patients who are undergoing an autologous stem cell transplant for newly diagnosed gliomas.

RATIONALE: Specialized radiation therapy that delivers radiation directly to the tumor may kill more tumor cells and cause less damage to normal tissue. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well radiation therapy works in treating young patients with gliomas.

Vaccines made from a person's tumor cells, such as gp96 heat shock protein-peptide complex, may help the body build an effective immune response to kill tumor cells. This phase I/II trial is studying the side effects and best dose of gp96 heat shock protein-peptide complex vaccine to see how well it works in treating patients with recurrent or progressive high-grade glioma over time.

This phase II trial is studying how well giving O6-benzylguanine together with temozolomide works in treating young patients with recurrent or progressive gliomas or brain stem tumors. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as O6-benzylguanine and temozolomide , work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. O6-benzylguanine may help temozolomide work better by making tumor cells more sensitive to the drug. Giving more than one drug (combination chemotherapy) may kill more tumor cells.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as temozolomide, 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 temozolomide together with radiation therapy may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well giving temozolomide together with radiation therapy works in treating patients with low-grade gliomas.