Carboplatin Treatment Options in South Dakota

RATIONALE: Biological therapies such as gefitinib may interfere with the growth of cancer cells and slow the growth of the tumor. Drugs used in chemotherapy such as carboplatin and paclitaxel use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining gefitinib with carboplatin and paclitaxel may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well giving gefitinib alone or together with carboplatin and paclitaxel works in treating older patients with unresectable or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer. Read Less

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 II trial to study the effectiveness of combining docetaxel and carboplatin in treating women who have metastatic breast cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as paclitaxel, carboplatin, and fluorouracil, work in different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Giving radiation therapy with chemotherapy and giving them before surgery may shrink the tumor so that it can be removed during surgery. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well giving radiation therapy together with combination chemotherapy followed by esophagectomy works in treating patients with locally advanced cancer of the esophagus or gastroesophageal junction. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Colony-stimulating factors such as filgrastim may increase the number of immune cells found in bone marrow or peripheral blood and may help a person's immune system recover from the side effects of chemotherapy. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to compare the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy with or without filgrastim in treating patients who have extensive-stage small cell lung cancer that has not been previously treated. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as carboplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Pemetrexed may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth. Monoclonal antibodies, such as bevacizumab, can block tumor growth in different ways. Some block the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Others find tumor cells and help kill them or carry tumor-killing substances to them. Giving pemetrexed together with carboplatin and bevacizumab may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well giving pemetrexed together with carboplatin and bevacizumab works as first-line therapy in treating older patients with stage IIIB or stage IV non-small cell lung cancer. Read Less

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 and radiation therapy may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase I/II trial is studying the side effects and best dose of radiation therapy when given with combination chemotherapy and to see how well they work in treating patients with non-small cell lung cancer that cannot be surgically removed. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining more than one drug may kill more tumor cells. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. It is not yet known if combination chemotherapy is more effective with or without radiation therapy for stage IIIA non-small cell lung cancer. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy with or without radiation therapy in treating patients who have stage IIIA non-small cell lung cancer that has been surgically removed. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining more than one drug may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of carboplatin and paclitaxel in treating patients who have metastatic or recurrent unresectable non-small cell lung cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as docetaxel and carboplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Colony-stimulating factors, such as pegfilgrastim, may increase the number of immune cells found in bone marrow or peripheral blood and may help the immune system recover from the side effects of chemotherapy. Giving docetaxel and carboplatin together with pegfilgrastim before surgery may shrink the tumor so that it can be removed. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well giving docetaxel and carboplatin together with pegfilgrastim works in treating patients who are undergoing surgery for stage II or stage III breast cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as pemetrexed disodium and carboplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Giving more than one drug (combination chemotherapy) may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well giving pemetrexed disodium together with carboplatin works in treating patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as pemetrexed disodium and carboplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Pemetrexed disodium may also stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth. Giving radiation therapy together with pemetrexed disodium and carboplatin before surgery may make the tumor smaller and reduce the amount of normal tissue that needs to be removed. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well giving radiation therapy together with pemetrexed disodium and carboplatin works in treating patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer that can be removed by surgery. Read Less

This randomized phase III trial studies carboplatin, paclitaxel, and sorafenib tosylate to see how well they work compared to carboplatin and paclitaxel in treating patients with stage III or stage IV melanoma that cannot be removed by surgery. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as carboplatin and paclitaxel, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Sorafenib tosylate may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth and by blocking blood flow to the tumor. It is not yet known whether giving carboplatin and paclitaxel together with sorafenib tosylate is more effective than carboplatin and paclitaxel in treating melanoma. Read Less