Active clinical trials for "Head and Neck Neoplasms"

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining chemotherapy with radiation therapy may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of radiation therapy and cisplatin in treating patients who have advanced head and neck cancer.

RATIONALE: Biological therapies such as erlotinib may interfere with the growth of tumor cells and slow the growth of the tumor. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining erlotinib with cisplatin may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase I/II trial to study the effectiveness of combining erlotinib and cisplatin in treating patients who have recurrent or metastatic head and neck cancer.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Motexafin gadolinium may increase the effectiveness of doxorubicin by making tumor cells more sensitive to the drug. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of combining motexafin gadolinium with doxorubicin in treating patients who have recurrent or metastatic cancer.

Monoclonal antibodies, such as bevacizumab, 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 deliver cancer-killing substances to them. Drugs used in chemotherapy work in 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 monoclonal antibody therapy with chemotherapy and radiation therapy may be an effective treatment for head and neck cancer. This phase I trial is to see if combining bevacizumab, fluorouracil, and hydroxyurea with radiation therapy works in treating patients who have advanced head and neck cancer

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 with radiation therapy following surgery may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of chemotherapy plus radiation therapy in treating patients who have undergone surgery for stage III or stage IV head and neck cancer.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining more than one chemotherapy drug may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of liposomal lurtotecan plus cisplatin in treating patients who have advanced or metastatic solid tumors.

RATIONALE: SU5416 may stop the growth of head and neck cancer by stopping blood flow to the tumor. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining SU5416 with chemotherapy may kill more cancer cells. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of SU5416 and paclitaxel in treating patients who have recurrent, locally advanced, or metastatic cancer of the head and neck.

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. It is not yet known whether surgery plus radiation therapy is more effective than chemotherapy plus radiation therapy for head and neck cancer. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is studying surgery and radiation therapy to see how well they work compared to chemotherapy and radiation therapy in treating patients with stage III or stage IV head and neck cancer that can be removed during surgery.

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of L-778,123 in treating patients with recurrent or refractory solid tumors.

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 bryostatin 1 in treating patients with metastatic or recurrent head and neck cancer.