Glioma Clinical Trials

Low-grade gliomas (LGGs) are the most common brain tumors in children, and a subset of these tumors are treated definitively with focal radiation therapy (RT). These patients often survive for many years after receiving RT and experience late deficits in memory. Verbal recall is an important measure of memory and is associated with other important functional outcomes, such as problem-solving, independence of every-day functioning, and quality of life. Decline in memory, as measured by verbal recall, is associated with RT dose to the hippocampi. Therefore, this phase II study investigates the feasibility of reducing RT doses to the hippocampi (i.e., hippocampal avoidance \[HA\]) by using proton therapy for midline or suprasellar LGGs. Primary Objective: * To determine the feasibility of HA with proton therapy in suprasellar or midline LGGs. Feasibility will be established if 70% of plans meet the first or second dose constraints shown below. 1. First priority RT dose constraints for bilateral hippocampi: volume receiving 40 CGE (V40CGE) ≤ 25%, dose to 100% of Hippocampus (D100%) ≤ 5CGE. 2. Second priority RT dose constraints for bilateral hippocampi: V40CGE ≤ 35%, D100% ≤ 10 CGE. Secondary Objectives: * To estimate the 3-year event-free-survival (EFS) for LGGs treated with HA. * To estimate the change in California Verbal Learning Test short-term delay (CVLT-SD) from baseline to 3 years and from baseline to 5 years * To compare CVLT-SD and Cogstate neurocognitive scores in patients with proton therapy plans that: (1) meet first priority RT dose constraints, (2) meet second priority RT dose constraints but not first priority RT dose constraints, and (3) that did not meet either first or second RT priority dose constraints Exploratory Objectives: * To describe the change in overall cognitive performance from baseline to 3 years and from baseline to 5 years with an age appropriate battery, including gold standard measures shown in the published studies to be sensitive to attention, memory processing speed and executive function that will afford comparison to historical controls. * To characterize longitudinal changes in connection strength within brain networks in the first 3 years after proton therapy and to investigate associations between these changes and neurocognitive performance with focus on the hippocampi. * To correlate the distribution and change in L-methyl-11C-methionine positron emission tomography (MET-PET) uptake to tumor progression and from baseline to 3 years and to investigate whether cases of pseudoprogression exhibit a differential pattern of uptake and distribution compared to cases of true progression after controlling for histology. * To investigate the effect of BRAF alteration, tumor histology and tumor location on PFS and OS in a prospective cohort of patients treated in a homogenous manner. * To investigate whether the methylation profiles of LGGs differ by tumor location (thalamic/midbrain vs. hypothalamic/optic pathway vs. others) and histologies (pilocytic astrocytoma vs. diffuse astrocytoma vs. others), which, in conjunction with specific genetic alterations, may stratify patients into different subgroups and highlight different therapeutic targets. * To record longitudinal measures of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) in plasma and correlate these measures with radiographic evidence of disease progression. * To bank formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE)/frozen tumors and whole blood from subjects for subsequent biology studies not currently defined in this protocol. * To quantify and characterize tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and to characterize the epigenetics of T cells and the T cell receptor repertoire within the tumor microenvironment. * To estimate the cumulative incidence of endocrine deficiencies, vision loss, hearing loss and vasculopathy after proton therapy and compare these data to those after photon therapy. Read Less

The primary goal of this Phase I study is to determine the maximum tolerated dose of oncolytic adenovirus mediated double suicide-gene therapy in combination with fractionated stereotactic radiosurgery in patients with recurrent high-grade astrocytoma undergoing resection. Read Less

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of targeted blood brain barrier disruption with Exablate Model 4000 Type 2.0/2.1 for liquid biopsy in subjects with suspected Glioblastoma brain tumors Read Less

This goal of this study is to test an information and support intervention for patients with malignant (or "high-grade") brain tumors. This study was developed to help patients cope after a brain tumor diagnosis. The main question this study aims to answer is whether this intervention (which includes access to an information guide and one-on-one coaching sessions) is feasible (i.e., possible to carry out) and acceptable (i.e., considered helpful) to patients. Participants will be asked to take part in the coaching sessions, use the guide as desired, and complete a small group of short surveys at three different points in time; some participants will be asked to share feedback via exit interviews. Read Less

This pilot trial studies the side effects of hyperpolarized carbon C 13 pyruvate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in diagnosing participants with glioma. Diagnostic procedures, such as hyperpolarized carbon C 13 pyruvate MRI, may help find and diagnose glioma. Read Less

This study will collect medical records, scan results, and complete surveys to create a registry about people with a neurofibromatosis type 1-associated brain tumor (NF1-associated glioma). A registry is a collection of health information about individuals, and it is usually focused on a specific diagnosis or condition. This registry study will help the researchers learn more about the diagnosis, treatment, and quality of life of people with NF1-associated glioma. The researchers want to understand what happens as a result of different treatments for NF1-associated glioma and how these treatments and the disease itself affect people's lives over a period of time. Information collected during this study could affect how doctors diagnose, test, and treat NF1-associated glioma, and the study could help future patients with this type of cancer. Read Less

The purpose of this study is to see if 18F-fluciclovine (Axumin®) PET imaging is useful and safe in the management of children with High Grade Gliomas. Investigators seek to determine if this imaging will help doctors tell the difference between tumor growth (progression) and other tumor changes that can occur after treatment. Read Less

The researchers think that the use of advanced MR imaging may help people with this disease, because it may better predict areas within a malignant glioma (brain tumor) that are at a high risk of recurring. WeThe reserchers are doing this study to see whether this advanced imaging is a safe treatment that causes few or mild side effects in people with brain tumors. Read Less

This clinical trial constructs and tests a novel multinuclear metabolic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) sequence in patients with glioma (brain tumor) that is newly diagnosed or has come back (recurrent). This trial aims to develop new diagnostic imaging technology that may bridge gaps between early detection and diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment in brain cancer. Read Less

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the treatment regimen of using Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy (LITT) and Hypo-fractionated Radiation Therapy to treat patients with recurrent gliomas. Read Less

This single center, single arm, open-label, phase I study will assess the safety of laparoscopically harvested autologous omentum, implanted into the resection cavity of recurrent glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) patients. Read Less

This study is investigating how brain tumors might mutate over time, and whether new brain imaging tools like MRI and PET can predict these mutations. Read Less