Carboplatin Treatment Options in Vermont

This randomized phase III trial studies how well radiation therapy, paclitaxel, and carboplatin with or without trastuzumab work in treating patients with esophageal cancer. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as paclitaxel and carboplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. Monoclonal antibodies, such as trastuzumab, may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. It is not yet known whether giving radiation therapy and combination chemotherapy together with or without trastuzumab is more effective in treating esophageal 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 drug may kill more tumor cells. It is not yet known if four-drug combination chemotherapy is more effective than two-drug combination chemotherapy in treating advanced cancer of the urothelium. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of four-drug combination chemotherapy with that of two-drug combination chemotherapy in treating patients who have advanced cancer of the urothelium. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as paclitaxel and carboplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. 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. Bevacizumab may also stop the growth of non-small cell lung cancer by blocking blood flow to the tumor. Pemetrexed disodium may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some enzymes needed for cell growth. It is not yet known whether giving bevacizumab or pemetrexed disodium alone or in combination is more effective in treating non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is studying bevacizumab and pemetrexed disodium alone or in combination after induction therapy to see how well they work in treating patients with advanced non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer. Read Less

Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as etoposide, carboplatin and cisplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. It is not yet known which radiation therapy regimen is more effective when given together with chemotherapy in treating patients with limited-stage small cell lung cancer. This randomized phase III trial is comparing different chest radiation therapy regimens to see how well they work in treating patients with limited-stage small cell lung cancer. Read Less

This randomized phase III trial studies carboplatin and paclitaxel to compare how well they work with or without bevacizumab and/or cetuximab in treating patients with stage IV or non-small cell lung cancer that has returned after a period of improvement (recurrent). 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, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. Bevacizumab may prevent the growth of new blood vessels that tumor needs to grow. Cetuximab may also stop cancer cells from growing by binding and interfering with a protein on the surface of the tumor cell that is needed for tumor growth. It is not yet known whether giving carboplatin and paclitaxel are more effective with or without bevacizumab and/or cetuximab in treating patients with non-small cell lung cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: PET scans done during chemotherapy may help doctors assess a patient's response to treatment and help plan the best treatment. PURPOSE: This randomized phase II trial is studying PET scan imaging in assessing response in patients with esophageal cancer receiving combination chemotherapy. Read Less

This partially randomized phase I/II trial studies the side effects and best dose of sunitinib malate and to see how well it works when given together with cisplatin or carboplatin and etoposide in treating patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as cisplatin, carboplatin, and etoposide, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Sunitinib malate 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 cisplatin or carboplatin and etoposide are more effective when given with or without sunitinib malate in treating small cell lung cancer. Read Less

This phase II trial studies how well combination chemotherapy works in treating younger patients with newly diagnosed, non-metastatic desmoplastic medulloblastoma. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as vincristine sulfate, cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, etoposide, and carboplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. Read Less

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as paclitaxel, carboplatin work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Monoclonal antibodies, such as cetuximab 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. It is not yet known whether high-dose radiation therapy is more effective than standard-dose radiation therapy when given together with combination chemotherapy with or without cetuximab in treating patients with non-small cell lung cancer. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is studying high-dose or standard-dose radiation therapy given together with chemotherapy with or without cetuximab to see how well they work in treating patients with newly diagnosed stage III non-small cell lung cancer that cannot be removed by surgery. Read Less

This randomized phase III trial compares two different high-dose chemotherapy regimens followed by a stem cell transplant in treating younger patients with high-risk neuroblastoma. Drugs used in chemotherapy work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Giving combination chemotherapy before surgery may make the tumor smaller and reduce the amount of normal tissue that needs to be removed. Giving these treatments before a peripheral blood stem cell transplant helps kill any tumor cells that are in the body and helps make room in the patient?s bone marrow for new blood-forming cells (stem cells) to grow. After treatment, stem cells are collected from the patient's blood and stored. High-dose chemotherapy and radiation therapy is then given to prepare the bone marrow for the stem cell transplant. The stem cells are then returned to the patient to replace the blood-forming cells that were destroyed by the high- chemotherapy. It is not yet known which regimen of high-dose chemotherapy is more effective for patients with high-risk neuroblastoma undergoing a peripheral blood stem cell transplant. Read Less

This randomized phase III trial studies carboplatin and paclitaxel to see how well they work with or without cisplatin and radiation therapy in treating patients with stage I-IVA endometrial cancer. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as carboplatin, paclitaxel, and cisplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. Giving chemotherapy and radiation therapy after surgery may kill any tumor cells that remain after surgery. It is not yet known whether carboplatin and paclitaxel are more effective with or without cisplatin and radiation therapy in treating patients with endometrial cancer. Read Less

This trial studies the chemotherapy toxicity on quality of life in older patients with stage I, stage II, stage III, or stage IV ovarian epithelial, primary peritoneal cavity, or fallopian tube cancer. Learning about the side effects of chemotherapy in older patients may help doctors plan better ways to treat cancer. Read Less