Boston, MA Paid Clinical Trials

This research study is evaluating a therapy called proton beam radiation therapy (PBRT) as a possible treatment for neuroblastoma. Neuroblastoma most commonly occurs in and around the adrenal glands, which are located at the top of the kidneys. However, it can also occur in other areas where groups of nerve cells exist, such as other areas of the abdomen, neck and near the spine. Conventional radiation therapy with photons is used as standard treatment for many patients with neuroblastic tumors. In this research study, the investigators are looking at another type of radiation called proton radiation which is known to spare surrounding tissues and organs from unnecessary radiation. Proton radiation delivers radiation to the area requiring radiation. This may reduce side effects that patients would normally experience with standard radiation therapy or other means of delivering proton radiation therapy. In this research study, the investigators are evaluating the effectiveness of using proton radiation delivered to reduce side effects associated with radiation treatment. The investigators will also be assessing the late side effects experienced by participants in each treatment group. Read Less

This research study is exploring the effects of dietary intervention in PSC. Study participants will be randomly assigned to either the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD) or a vegan/low-sulfur diet for 8 weeks; the entire study will last approximately 14 weeks. Participants will work with BWH Registered Dieticians and receive dietary educational materials, recipes, and a food procurement stipend to support the new diet. Subjects will attend 7 video visits and have regular lab tests performed, requiring blood and stool samples. Read Less

This research study is studying a combination of drugs as a possible treatment for EGFR-Mutated Advanced Lung Cancer. The names of the study drugs involved in this study are Niraparib and Osimertinib. Read Less

Although over 200,000 individuals with DS live in the United States, studies to date have focused on outcomes apart from health. The foundation for this proposal is based on the need to accurately measure health of all individuals - specifically, with DS - and the dearth of available tools for this population. Creating such an instrument will provide a barometer of the current state of health for DS and hold use in future research. In this project, I propose to create an instrument that directly assesses health in DS - the Down syndrome Health Instrument (DHI). More specifically, the aims of this proposal are: 1. To conduct focus groups among caregivers, individuals with DS, panels of experts on DS and primary care physicians, and cognitive interviews to refine a conceptual model of health for DS and create an item pool, 2. To administer the DHI and establish internal validity, reliability, and external validity of the DHI for use in clinical research, and 3. To test the usability of the DHI in two pilot settings: research and clinical. This instrument will measure patient-reported health in DS for the first time and allow measurement of health as an outcome which is not currently possible in this population. This can identify gaps in care, then direct and optimize interventions that will improve care. Read Less

This is an observational study of children and young adults ages 6-20 years with type 1 diabetes and age- and race-matched controls. The investigators will be examining blood and urine hormone levels as well as measures of bone density including DXA and high-resolution peripheral quantitiative computed tomography. The investigators will also be collecting data regarding physical activity via use of wearable accelerometers. The investigators hypothesize that youth with type 1 diabetes will have slower bone accrual and impaired bone microarchitectural integrity compared with non-diabetic controls, and that bones of individuals with type 1 diabetes will not respond as well to physical activity. The investigators hypothesize that poor bone accrual will be associated with sub-optimal glucose control as well as lower levels of insulin-like growth factor 1. Read Less

This research study is a Phase I clinical trial. Phase I clinical trials test the safety of an investigational intervention. Phase I studies also try to define the appropriate dose of the investigational therapy to use for further studies. "Investigational" means that the intervention is still being studied and that research doctors are trying to find out more about it. Retroperitoneal sarcomas are soft tissue tumors located at the far back of the abdomen. Typically, patients with retroperitoneal sarcomas either have surgery for the removal of their tumors alone, or have their tumors removed, followed by standard radiation therapy, or have pre-operative radiation followed by surgery. When conventional radiation therapy is delivered after surgery, it can damage normal tissue. In this study, you will undergo proton beam radiation therapy or IMRT before undergoing surgery for the removal of your tumor. Proton radiation and IMRT are FDA approved radiation delivery systems. Protons are tiny particles with positive charge that can be controlled to travel a certain distance and stop inside the body. In theory, this allows better control of where the radiation dose is delivered as compared to photons. Since proton radiation is more targeted, it may help to reduce unwanted side effects from radiation. In this study, a standard dose of radiation will be given to the majority of the tumor, while a simultaneously integrated boost of additional radiation will be given to certain areas of the tumor identified as higher risk. This means that a higher radiation dose will be given to the higher risk areas of the tumor. The purpose of this study is to determine the highest dose of radiation therapy with protons or IMRT that can be delivered safely in patients with retroperitoneal sarcomas and the effectiveness of proton beam radiation therapy as an intervention for patients with retroperitoneal sarcomas. Read Less

Due to the lack of direct evidence of optimal iodine intake of Chinese children, pregnant and lactating women and infants were found during the recent revision of Chinese dietary reference intakes (DRIs) of iodine in 2013 by the applicant Pro. Zhang, and no systematical research about compensatory mechanism of iodine nutrition in lactating women was found yet. Previous study funded by United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) cooperated with the international experts on iodine and key project of national natural science foundation of China under the guidance of Pro. Zhang, had obtained the safe intake range of iodine from children and pregnant women, more than 10 joint papers were published, which laid the foundation of population study and international cooperation. Read Less

A phase III randomized multi-center study designed to compare the efficacy of crenolanib with that of midostaurin when administered following induction chemotherapy, consolidation chemotherapy and bone marrow transplantation in newly diagnosed AML subjects with FLT3 mutation. About 510 subjects will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to receive either crenolanib in addition to standard first line treatment of AML (chemotherapy and if eligible, transplantation) (arm A) or midostaurin and standard treatment (arm B). Potentially eligible subjects will be registered and tested for the presence of FLT3 mutation. Once the FLT3 mutation status is confirmed and additional eligibility is established, subject will be randomized and enter into the treatment phase. Read Less

Surgery is currently the only potentially curative treatment modality for localized retroperitoneal sarcoma (RPS). Available studies regarding oncologic outcomes are mainly retrospective in nature, and RPS are recognized as a rare disease. Therefore, prospective analysis of high quality data is a top priority. Primary Objectives of this study are: to prospectively collect standardized clinical data and radiological and pathological material from primary RPS patients treated with surgery at reference centers. patient outcome will be evaluated in terms of overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), crude cumulative incidence (CCI) of local recurrence (LR) and distant metastasis (DM). Secondary Objectives: to estimate the efficacy and safety of surgical treatment, including extended surgical approach to primary RPS; to prospectively evaluate the impact of multimodality therapy, including radiation therapy and chemotherapy; to identify clinical, radiological and pathological characteristics that may influence the oncological outcome or may be used as predictors of LR/DM/OS. These may be important biomarkers of disease; to utilize collected pathological material for research collaborations. Read Less