Active clinical trials for "Neuroblastoma"

This pilot trial studies different high-dose chemotherapy regimens with or without total-body irradiation (TBI) to compare how well they work when given before autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT) in treating patients with hematologic cancer or solid tumors. Giving high-dose chemotherapy with or without TBI before ASCT stops the growth of cancer cells by stopping them from dividing or killing them. After treatment, stem cells are collected from the patient's blood or bone marrow and stored. More chemotherapy may be given to prepare for the stem cell transplant. The stem cells are then returned to the patient to replace the blood forming cells that were destroyed by the chemotherapy.

High-risk neuroblastoma is an aggressive childhood cancer that shows up as a lump or mass in the belly or around the spinal cord in the chest, neck, or pelvis. Often the tumor has spread around the body to the bones or to the soft center of the bone, called the bone marrow. High-risk neuroblastoma often responds to treatment at first, but it frequently comes back and may be even more difficult to treat. Chemotherapy (drug treatments for cancer) is usually given at high doses in short bursts (3 to 5 days) followed by a few weeks of rest and recovery. This burst and recovery is called a "cycle" and usually takes about 21 days. Some scientists and physicians have tried to give chemotherapy at lower doses for more days, called "metronomic" chemotherapy. This method of giving chemotherapy has been used to treat neuroblastoma that has failed more standard types of treatment (relapsed neuroblastoma) and has shown some promise for those patients. One of the reasons it may work is by killing the blood vessels that feed the tumor as well as killing tumor cells themselves (the way that burst chemotherapy works). We think that giving a burst of chemotherapy together with metronomic therapy may kill the tumor while decreasing the side effects that we have seen in the past. Treatment for high risk neuroblastoma usually occurs in 3 stages: induction, consolidation, and maintenance. During the induction phase, patients will receive chemotherapy and possibly more surgery to get rid of most of the tumor cells. Most of the chemotherapy drugs during induction will be given in the standard burst method. One of the chemotherapy drugs, etoposide, will be given in lower, metronomic doses. The doctors will study how the tumors respond and the side effects patients have. After induction most childrens' tumors will have disappeared, also called remission. These children will receive the second stage of treatment called consolidation. During this stage, subjects will receive radiation treatments to the tumor and then higher doses of chemotherapy. Because of the side effects of the high doses of chemotherapy, we will collect and store some special blood cells (called hematopoietic stem cells) early in treatment and keep them frozen. After the high doses of chemotherapy, these cells will be thawed and given to the subject. . This is called hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). The final stage of treatment, called maintenance, consists of a drug taken by mouth for 6 months. Surgery to remove large, or bulky, tumors is a standard part of treatment for high risk neuroblastoma. A few children can have their main tumor removed before chemotherapy, but most require the tumor to shrink first. Surgery has usually been scheduled for after 3 to 5 cycles of therapy, but no one really knows how quickly the tumors are ready to come out. Because chemotherapy has significant side effects that can change the risks of surgery, we will study how early surgeries to remove tumors can happen. This study is being done to evaluate the outcomes of disease response and survival in children with high risk neuroblastoma treated on this regimen.

There has been no successful treatment of diffuse peritoneal metastasis or carcinomatosis, in childhood tumors. Once this advanced stage of disease is evident, survival is measured in weeks. The selective lethal effect of supranormal temperatures on neoplastic cells and the additive or synergistic effect of combining chemotherapy has been well established in adult clinical trials using continuous hyperthermic peritoneal perfusion (CHPP) for advanced peritoneal adenocarcinoma of gastrointestinal origin, ovarian carcinoma and mesothelioma. This phase I study will evaluate the safety of continuous hyperthermic peritoneal perfusion with escalating doses of intraperitoneal cisplatin in the treatment of children with refractory tumors limited to the abdominal cavity. If tumors are outside the abdominal cavity, the tumors must be able to be controlled. Since CHPP has potential to improve outcome of children with peritoneal and retroperitoneal metastases, this study will evaluate the safety of elevated temperature (40oC) with intraperitoneal cisplatin chemotherapy. Primary Objectives: To determine the MTD and dose-limiting toxicity of intraperitoneal cisplatin given in combination with CHPP as a 90 minute perfusion in children with advanced peritoneal and retroperitoneal solid tumors To determine the safe and tolerable dose of CHPP with cisplatin to be used in Phase II trials To determine the pharmacokinetics of intraperitoneal cisplatin platinum given with CHPP as a 90 minute abdominal perfusion (Optional)

This phase II trial is studying how well etanercept works in treating young patients with idiopathic pneumonia syndrome after undergoing a donor stem cell transplant. Etanercept may be effective in treating patients with idiopathic pneumonia syndrome after undergoing a donor stem cell transplant.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as irinotecan and temozolomide, 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. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well giving irinotecan together with temozolomide works in treating young patients with recurrent neuroblastoma.

This phase I trial is studying the side effects and best dose of vorinostat when given together with isotretinoin in treating young patients with recurrent or refractory solid tumors, lymphoma, or leukemia. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as vorinostat, work in different ways to stop the growth of cancer cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Vorinostat may also stop the growth of cancer cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth and by blocking blood flow to the cancer. Isotretinoin may cause cancer cells to look more like normal cells, and to grow and spread more slowly. Giving vorinostat together with isotretinoin may be an effective treatment for cancer.

Localized solid tumors such as, sarcoma, neuroblastoma, and Wilms' tumor, can generally be effectively treated with a combination of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. However, patients with metastatic or relapsed disease have a very poor prognosis. New approaches to the management of these difficult groups of patients are needed. There is evidence to suggest that solid tumors may be good candidates for immunotherapy approaches. In fact, recent experimental evidence indicates that the period of lymphopenia that occurs after stem cell transplant may be an opportune time to use an immunotherapy treatment approach. In light of the very poor prognosis of young patients with advanced solid tumors, this treatment approach warrants further investigation.

RATIONALE: Monoclonal antibodies can locate tumor cells and either kill them or deliver tumor-killing substances to them without harming normal cells. Combining colony-stimulating factors, such as sargramostim, with monoclonal antibodies may be an effective treatment for advanced neuroblastoma. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of monoclonal antibody 3F8 plus sargramostim in treating patients who have advanced neuroblastoma.

Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of docetaxel in treating children with recurrent solid tumors. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die.

This phase I trial is studying the side effects and best dose of decitabine when given together with doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide in treating children with relapsed or refractory solid tumors or neuroblastoma. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as decitabine, doxorubicin, and cyclophosphamide, work in different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining more than one drug may kill more tumor cells.