Cisplatin Treatment Options in District Of Columbia

This study is for patients with newly diagnosed head and neck cancer that cannot be removed by surgery. The purpose of this study is to determine the feasibility of using genetic variations in patients to select the right drug to treat head and neck cancer. Cisplatin and cetuximab (Erbitux)are both approved by the FDA to treat head and neck cancer in combination with radiation therapy. In this study the investigators will test whether genetic differences between patients can be used to pick which of these two drugs a patient should receive. All patients will have a blood sample drawn that will be tested for genetic differences. If patients have genetic differences that correlate with a better outcome from cisplatin they will receive cisplatin with radiation. If patients have genetic differences that do not correlate with a better outcome from cisplatin they will receive cetuximab with their radiation therapy. 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. Chemoprotective drugs such as dexrazoxane may protect normal cells from the side effects of chemotherapy. PURPOSE: Phase III trial to study the effectiveness of three combination chemotherapy regimens plus dexrazoxane in treating patients who have newly diagnosed nonmetastatic osteosarcoma. 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 radiation therapy with chemotherapy may kill more tumor cells. It is not yet known which chemotherapy regimen is more effective when combined with radiation therapy for treating medulloblastoma. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare two combination chemotherapy treatments plus radiation therapy in treating children with newly diagnosed medulloblastoma. 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 radiation therapy with chemotherapy may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of etoposide plus radiation therapy followed by combination chemotherapy in treating children with newly diagnosed advanced medulloblastoma. 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. Giving more than one drug (combination chemotherapy) may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying the side effects and best dose of zoledronic acid when given together with combination chemotherapy in treating patients with newly diagnosed metastatic osteosarcoma. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining chemotherapy with peripheral stem cell transplantation may allow the doctors to give higher doses of chemotherapy drugs and kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy plus peripheral stem cell transplantation in treating infants with malignant brain or spinal cord tumors. 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. It is not yet known which treatment regimen is more effective for endometrial cancer. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare radiation therapy with chemotherapy in treating patients who have advanced endometrial 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 more than one chemotherapy drug with radiation therapy may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of radiation therapy plus combination chemotherapy in treating patients with limited-stage 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 drug may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effect on the body of combining cyclophosphamide with cisplatin, etoposide, and bleomycin in treating children who have newly diagnosed malignant germ cell tumors that are not in the brain and gonads. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as carboplatin and vincristine, work in 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 carboplatin and vincristine with radiation therapy followed by adjuvant chemotherapy may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Randomized phase II trial to study the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy plus radiation therapy followed adjuvant chemotherapy in treating young patients who have newly diagnosed high-risk CNS embryonal tumors. Read Less

This study will gather and compare data about the effectiveness and safety of two different treatments for extensive Small Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC) in patients who have not received previous chemotherapy. One treatment will use an investigational drug in combination with an FDA approved chemotherapy. The other treatment will use a combination of two FDA approved chemotherapy drugs. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. It is not yet known if cisplatin and vinorelbine are more effective with or without tirapazamine in treating non-small cell lung cancer PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of cisplatin plus vinorelbine with or without tirapazamine in treating patients who have stage IIIB or stage IV non-small cell lung cancer. Read Less