Active clinical trials for "Precancerous Conditions"

RATIONALE: Thalidomide may stop the growth of systemic mastocytosis by blocking blood flow to the disease. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well thalidomide works in treating patients with relapsed or progressive systemic mastocytosis.

RATIONALE: Vaccines may help the body build an effective immune response against cytomegalovirus. PURPOSE: This randomized phase I trial is studying the side effects and best dose of cytomegalovirus vaccine in healthy participants.

RATIONALE: Vaccines made from human papillomavirus may help the body build an effective immune response to kill HIV cells. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying the side effects and how well human papillomavirus vaccine therapy works in treating men with HIV-1 infection.

RATIONALE: Monoclonal antibodies, such as cetuximab, can block abnormal cell growth in different ways. Some block the ability of abnormal cells to grow and spread. Others find abnormal cells and help kill them or carry cell-killing substances to them. PURPOSE: This randomized phase II trial is studying how well cetuximab works in treating patients with precancerous lesions of the upper aerodigestive tract.

Oral leukoplakia within the mouth is a visible white patch which can develop into cancer if not treated. There is no good treatment for these lesions, apart from surgery which is associated with significant side effects and physical deformation of the treated area. The investigators hypothesized that photodynamic therapy can be used safely and effectively to induce significant regression of oral leukoplakia.

RATIONALE: High-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions of the skin near the anus are caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). Antiviral drugs,, such as cidofovir, act against viruses and may stop these lesions from becoming cancer. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying the side effects and how well topical cidofovir works in treating HIV-infected patients with high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions of the skin near the anus.

RATIONALE: Monoclonal antibodies can locate tumor cells and either kill them or deliver tumor-killing substances to them without harming normal cells. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of monoclonal antibodies in treating patients who have advanced cancer.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop cancer cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Peripheral stem cell transplantation may be able to replace immune cells that were destroyed by chemotherapy used to kill cancer cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy followed by peripheral stem cell transplantation in treating patients who have hematologic cancer or aplastic anemia.

RATIONALE: The Epstein Barr virus can cause cancer and lymphoproliferative disorders. Ganciclovir is an antiviral drug that acts against the Epstein Barr virus. Arginine butyrate may make virus cells more sensitive to ganciclovir. Combining ganciclovir and arginine butyrate may kill more Epstein Barr virus cells and tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of arginine butyrate plus ganciclovir in treating patients who have cancer or lymphoproliferative disorders that are associated with the Epstein Barr virus.

RATIONALE: Photodynamic therapy uses a drug that becomes active when it is exposed to a certain kind of light. When the drug is active, tumor cells are killed. Photodynamic therapy using silicon phthalocyanine 4 may be effective against skin cancer. PURPOSE: This phase I trial is studying the side effects and best dose of photodynamic therapy using silicon phthalocyanine 4 in treating participants with actinic keratosis, Bowen's disease, skin cancer, or stage I or stage II mycosis fungoides.