Cisplatin Treatment Options in Delaware

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as paclitaxel and cisplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. 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. Cetuximab may stop the growth of esophageal cancer by blocking blood flow to the tumor. It is not yet known whether giving paclitaxel and cisplatin together with radiation therapy is more effective with or without cetuximab in treating esophageal cancer. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is comparing how well giving paclitaxel and cisplatin together with radiation therapy works with or without cetuximab in treating patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as cisplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Cisplatin may also make tumor cells more sensitive to radiation therapy. 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. Giving radiation therapy and cisplatin together with cetuximab may kill more tumor cells. It is not yet known whether radiation therapy and cisplatin are more effective with or without cetuximab in treating head and neck cancer. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is studying radiation therapy, cisplatin, and cetuximab to see how well they work compared to radiation therapy and cisplatin in treating patients with stage III or stage IV head and neck cancer. 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 phase II trial studies how well radiation therapy works when given with gemcitabine hydrochloride and cisplatin work in treating patients with squamous cell cancer of the vulva that has spread from where it started to nearby tissue or lymph nodes. Specialized radiation therapy that delivers a high dose of radiation directly to the tumor may kill more tumor cells and cause less damage to normal tissue. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as gemcitabine hydrochloride 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. Giving radiation therapy together with gemcitabine hydrochloride and cisplatin may kill more tumor cells. Read Less

This randomized phase III trial compares how well two different combination chemotherapy regimens (doxorubicin hydrochloride, cisplatin, and paclitaxel versus carboplatin and paclitaxel) work in treating patients with endometrial cancer that is stage III-IV or has come back (recurrent). Drugs used in chemotherapy such as doxorubicin hydrochloride, cisplatin, 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. It is not yet known which combination chemotherapy regimen is more effective in treating endometrial cancer. 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

RATIONALE: 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. 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. Giving more than one chemotherapy drug (combination chemotherapy) together with cetuximab may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This randomized phase II trial is studying three different combination chemotherapy regimens to compare how well they work when given together with cetuximab in treating patients with metastatic esophageal cancer or gastroesophageal junction cancer. Read Less

This phase III trial is studying surgery followed by combination chemotherapy to see how well it works in treating children with germ cell tumors that are not located in the head. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining more than one drug, and giving them after surgery, may kill any remaining tumor cells following surgery. It is not yet known whether combination chemotherapy is effective in decreasing the recurrence of childhood germ cell tumors. Read Less

This randomized phase III trial studies bevacizumab and intravenous (given into a vein) chemotherapy to see how well they work compared with bevacizumab and intraperitoneal (given into the abdominal cavity) chemotherapy in treating patients with stage II-III ovarian epithelial cancer, fallopian tube cancer, or primary peritoneal cancer. Monoclonal antibodies, such as bevacizumab, can block the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread by blocking the growth of new blood vessels necessary for tumor growth. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as paclitaxel, 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 whether giving bevacizumab together with intravenous chemotherapy is more effective than giving bevacizumab together with intraperitoneal chemotherapy in treating patients with ovarian epithelial cancer, fallopian tube cancer, or primary peritoneal cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining chemotherapy with radiation therapy may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of radiation therapy and cisplatin in treating patients who have advanced head and neck cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. Epoetin alfa may stimulate red blood cell production and treat anemia in patients with head and neck cancer. It is not yet known whether receiving radiation therapy with epoetin alfa is more effective than radiation therapy alone in treating anemic patients with head and neck cancer. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of radiation therapy with or without epoetin alfa in treating anemic patients who have head and neck cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses x-rays to damage tumor cells. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining radiation therapy with chemotherapy and surgery may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase I/II trial to study the effectiveness of radiation therapy plus combination chemotherapy in treating patients who have stage II or stage III bladder cancer that can be removed by surgery. Read Less