Active clinical trials for "Head and Neck Neoplasms"

RATIONALE: Bortezomib may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth. It may also stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking blood flow to the tumor. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as docetaxel, 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 docetaxel may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well giving bortezomib together with docetaxel works in treating patients with recurrent or metastatic head and neck cancer.

Two new cancer treatment drugs called targeted therapies will be added to standard treatment for head and neck cancer to see if an improvement can be made in the effectiveness of treatment for this type of cancer. Treatment will include chemotherapy, radiation therapy and targeted therapy taken over a period of 4 months.

RATIONALE: Studying samples of tumor tissue from patients with cancer in the laboratory may help doctors learn more about changes that occur in DNA and identify biomarkers related to cancer. It may also help doctors predict how patients will respond to treatment with erlotinib. PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying how well erlotinib works when given before surgery in treating patients with head and neck cancer that can be removed by surgery.

RATIONALE: Diagnostic procedures, such as functional MRI, may help measure oxygen levels in tumor cells and may help in planning cancer treatment. PURPOSE: This phase I trial is studying functional MRI to see how well it works in finding hypoxia in patients undergoing chemotherapy and radiation therapy for stage III or stage IV head and neck cancer.

The purpose of this study is to explore the protective effect and safety of soluble beta-1,3/1,6-glucan compared to placebo in oral mucositis in head and neck patients receiving radiotherapy or chemoradiotherapy. Hypothesis: Soluble beta-1,3/1,6-glucan will through its immunomodulating activities prevent oral mucositis

This study will estimate overall response rate of pemetrexed in poor risk patients with advanced, metastatic, or recurrent squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.

RATIONALE: SCH 54031 (PEG-interferon alfa-2b) may interfere with the growth of tumor cells and slow the growth of head and neck cancer. It may also stop the growth of head and neck cancer by blocking blood flow to the tumor. Giving PEG-interferon alfa-2b before surgery may make the tumor smaller and reduce the amount of normal tissue that needs to be removed. PURPOSE: This randomized phase II trial is studying how well different doses of PEG-interferon alfa-2b work in treating patients with stage II, stage III, or stage IV head and neck cancer that can be removed by surgery.

This trial seeks to accomplish both local and regional control of head and neck cancer and reduce systemic metastatic disease. To do this, patients will received chemotherapy followed by chemotherapy and radiation (given together) with an escalating dose of docetaxel.

This is a Phase 2, multi-center, open label study of ARQ 501 in patients with locally advanced, recurrent or metastatic squamous cell cancer of the head and neck (SCCHN).

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the response of the tumor to the treatment regimen that will be used in this study. This study will also test the safety of cetuximab (C225), given with chemotherapy and radiation therapy. We also want to see what effects (good and bad) cetuximab, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy have head & neck cancer. C225 has been designed to stop the growth of the tumor by blocking certain chemical pathways that lead to tumor cell growth. In prior studies with head & neck cancer patients, C225 has delayed tumor growth and provided relief of symptoms in some patients.