Active clinical trials for "Oligodendroglioma"

This phase II trial is studying how well tipifarnib works in treating young patients with recurrent or progressive high-grade glioma, medulloblastoma, primitive neuroectodermal tumor, or brain stem glioma. Tipifarnib may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking the enzymes necessary for their growth.

The experimental anti-cancer drug IL13-PE38QQR, which is being developed for the treatment of malignant brain tumors, is composed of parts of two proteins: the immune system cytokine IL13 and a toxin from the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The IL13 part of the drug binds to another protein, the IL13 receptor, when this receptor is displayed on the outside surface of cells. Cells with drug bound to the IL13 receptor take up the drug, and the toxin part of the drug then kills those cells. Since brain tumor cells display the IL13 receptor, they are potential targets that may be killed by this drug. This is a pilot study to visualize the distribution of IL13-PE38QQR infused into and around brain tumor tissue before and after surgical removal of the tumor in adult patients with recurrent malignant glioma. Stored tumor tissue will be tested for presence of the receptor protein, which is required for study entry. Eligible patients will then undergo biopsy to confirm the diagnosis of recurrent malignant glioma. IL13-PE38QQR will be infused for 96 hours into and around tumor tissue through catheters that have been placed surgically. For the first 48 hours the drug will be mixed with a radioactive tracer, so that the distribution of the drug can be followed by a type of scanning called SPECT. Surgery to remove the tumor will be performed approximately 15 days after the end of the infusion. Catheters will again be placed surgically, and IL13-PE38QQR will be infused a second time for 96 hours. Radioactive tracer will be included in the infusion for the first 48 hours. For both infusions, SPECT scans will be taken at 6, 24, and 48 hours after the start of infusion. MRI scans will be taken within 90 minutes of the 24 and 48 hour SPECT scans. Patients will be followed closely with further scans and laboratory tests until completion of the study approximately 58 days after completion of the second infusion.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. Combining chemotherapy and radiation therapy may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of combining temozolomide with radiation therapy in treating patients who have newly diagnosed anaplastic oligodendrogliomas or mixed anaplastic oligoastrocytomas.

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 and combining chemotherapy with autologous bone marrow transplantation or peripheral stem cell transplantation may allow doctors to give higher doses of chemotherapy drugs and kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy plus bone marrow transplantation or peripheral stem cell transplantation in treating patients who have oligodendroglioma.

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 topotecan in treating patients with recurrent brain tumor.

This phase I trial studies the side effects and best dose of azurin-derived cell-penetrating peptide p28 (p28) in treating patients with recurrent or progressive central nervous system tumors. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as azurin-derived cell-penetrating peptide p28, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing.

This study is being done to evaluate the toxicity and safety of carboplatin administered by convection enhanced delivery into the tumor in patients with high grade glial neoplasms. This study is a dose escalating study, (the dose of the study drug is increased at set time points). Carboplatin is in a class of drugs known as platinum-containing compounds; it slows or stops the growth of cancer cells in your body. Convection enhanced delivery involves placing one or more catheters into the brain and delivering chemotherapy through those catheters directly into the brain

High Grade Gliomas, including anaplastic astrocytomas, anaplastic oligodendrogliomas and glioblastomas (GBM), are the most common and most aggressive primary brain tumors. Prognosis for patients with high-grade gliomas remains poor. The estimated median survival for patients with GBM is between 12 to 18 months. Recurrence after initial therapy with temozolomide and radiation is nearly universal. Since May 2009, the majority of patients in the US with an initial recurrence of high-grade glioma receive bevacizumab, a monoclonal antibody against vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), which is thought to prevent angiogenesis in these highly vascular tumors. BEV has response rates from 32-62% and has improved overall median survival in patients with recurrent high-grade gliomas1. However, the response is short lived, and nearly 100% of patients eventually progress despite bevacizumab. No chemotherapeutic agent administered following progression through bevacizumab has made a significant impact on survival. Patients progress to death within 1-5 months after resistance develops. Therefore, patients with high-grade gliomas who have progressed through bevacizumab represent a population in dire need of a feasible and tolerable treatment. NKTR-102 is a topoisomerase I inhibitor polymer conjugate that was engineered by attaching irinotecan molecules to a polyethylene glycol (PEG) polymer using a biodegradable linker. Irinotecan released from NKTR-102 following administration is further metabolized to the active metabolite, 7-ethyl-10-hydroxy-camptothecin (SN38), that causes DNA damage through inhibition of topoisomerase. The goal in designing NKTR-102 was to attenuate or eliminate some of the limiting side effects of irinotecan while improving efficacy by modifying the distribution of the agent within the body. The size and structure of NKTR-102 results in marked alteration in pharmacokinetic (PK) profile for the SN38 derived from NKTR-102 compared to that following irinotecan: the maximal plasma concentration (Cmax) is reduced 5- to 10-fold and the half-life (t1/2 ) of SN38 is increased from 2 days to approximately 50 days. This altered profile leads to constant exposure of the tumor to the active drug. In addition, the large NKTR-102 molecule does not freely pass out of intact vasculature, which may account for relatively higher concentrations of the compound and the active metabolites in tumor tissues in in vivo models, where the local vasculature may be relatively more permeable. A 145 mg/m2 dose of NKTR-102, the dose intended for use in this phase II clinical trial (and being used in the phase III clinical program), results in approximately the same plasma exposure to SN38 as a 350 mg/m2 dose of irinotecan, but exposure is protracted, resulting in continuous exposure between dosing cycles and lower Cmax. NKTR-102 was therefore developed as a new chemotherapeutic agent that may improve the clinical outcomes of patients.

The purpose of this study is to determine the efficacy and safety of temozolomide in patient with relapsed or advanced anaplastic oligodendroglioma and anaplastic oligoastrocytoma.

RATIONALE: Biological therapies, such as cellular adoptive immunotherapy, may stimulate the immune system in different ways and stop tumor cells from growing. Donor T cells that are treated in the laboratory may be effective treatment for malignant glioma. Aldesleukin may stimulate the white blood cells to kill tumor cells. Combining different types of biological therapies may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase I trial is studying the side effects and best way to give therapeutic donor lymphocytes together with aldesleukin in treating patients with stage III or stage IV malignant glioma.