Cisplatin Treatment Options in Wisconsin

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: Randomized phase II trial to compare the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy plus radiation therapy with and without fluorouracil in treating patients who have cancer of the esophagus or stomach. Read Less

RATIONALE: Chemotherapy drugs use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Chemoprotective drugs such as amifostine may protect normal cells from the side effects of chemotherapy. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of high-dose cisplatin, etoposide, and bleomycin plus amifostine in treating children who have malignant germ cell tumors. Read Less

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. 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. Cisplatin and paclitaxel may make tumor cells more sensitive to radiation therapy. Giving more than one drug (combination chemotherapy) and giving them with radiation therapy may kill more tumor cells. It is not yet known whether giving radiation therapy together with combination chemotherapy is more effective than giving combination chemotherapy alone in treating head and neck cancer. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is studying radiation therapy and combination chemotherapy to see how well they work compared to combination chemotherapy alone in treating patients with recurrent head and neck cancer that cannot be removed by surgery. 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 known whether combining chemotherapy with bone marrow or peripheral stem cell transplantation is more effective than combination chemotherapy alone in treating men with germ cell tumors. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy with or without bone marrow or peripheral stem cell transplantation in treating men with previously untreated germ cell tumors. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as cisplatin and docetaxel, 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. Cisplatin and docetaxel may make tumor cells more sensitive to radiation therapy. Giving more than one drug (combination chemotherapy) together with radiation therapy before surgery may shrink the tumor so it can be removed. Giving chemotherapy after surgery may kill any tumor cells that remain after surgery. It is not yet known whether giving cisplatin and docetaxel together with radiation therapy is more effective than giving cisplatin together with docetaxel in treating non-small cell lung cancer. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is studying cisplatin, docetaxel, and radiation therapy to see how well they work compared to cisplatin and docetaxel in treating patients who are undergoing surgery for newly diagnosed stage III 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 drug may kill more tumor cells. It is not yet known which chemotherapy regimen is more effective for cervical cancer. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of three different chemotherapy regimens in treating patients with stage IVB, recurrent, or persistent cervical 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 II trial to study the effectiveness of gemcitabine plus cisplatin in treating patients who have primary ovarian epithelial cancer or primary peritoneal cancer that is recurrent or has not responded to platinum-based chemotherapy. 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 doctor to give higher doses of chemotherapy drugs and kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is studying peripheral stem cell transplantation with treated peripheral stem cells following combination chemotherapy to see how well it works compared to peripheral stem cell transplantation with untreated peripheral stem cells following combination chemotherapy in treating patients with neuroblastoma. 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 regimen of radiation therapy combined with chemotherapy, with or without surgery, is more effective in treating early cancer of the cervix. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of surgery followed by different regimens of radiation therapy and chemotherapy with that of chemotherapy and radiation therapy alone in treating patients who have stage I cancer of the cervix. 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 combination chemotherapy in treating patients who have advanced ovarian epithelial cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as cisplatin, etoposide, and cyclophosphamide, work in 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: This phase II trial is studying how well giving cisplatin, etoposide, and cyclophosphamide together works in treating patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Imaging procedures, such as fludeoxyglucose F18 positron emission tomography (\^18FDG-PET), may improve the ability to detect disease progression and help doctors predict a patient's response to treatment and plan more effective treatment. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well \^18FDG-PET imaging works in detecting disease progression and determining response to treatment in patients who are undergoing chemoradiotherapy for locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer. Read Less