Paclitaxel Treatment Options in Illinois

Randomized phase II trial to study the effectiveness of chemotherapy with paclitaxel and the monoclonal antibody trastuzumab followed by chemotherapy in treating women who have stage II or stage IIIA breast cancer that overexpresses HER2. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Monoclonal antibodies can locate tumor cells and deliver tumor-killing substances to them without harming normal cells. Combining monoclonal antibody therapy with chemotherapy may kill more tumor cells. 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 effectiveness of combination chemotherapy in treating patients who have stage III or stage IV ovarian epithelial or primary peritoneal 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 and giving drugs in different ways may kill more tumor cells. It is not yet known whether intravenous two-drug combination chemotherapy is more effective than intravenous and intraperitoneal infusions of three-drug combination chemotherapy for treating primary peritoneal or stage III epithelial ovarian cancer. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of intravenous two-drug combination chemotherapy with intravenous and intraperitoneal three-drug combination chemotherapy in treating patients who have primary peritoneal or stage III epithelial ovarian cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of paclitaxel in treating patients who have recurrent or persistent ovarian or primary peritoneal 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 ovarian or peritoneal cancer. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of two regimens of paclitaxel plus cisplatin in treating patients who have residual disease after surgery to remove stage III or stage IV ovarian cancer or primary peritoneal cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. Paclitaxel and cisplatin may increase the effectiveness of radiation therapy by making the tumor cells more sensitive to radiation. 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. PURPOSE: Phase I/II trial to study the effectiveness of radiation therapy to the pelvis plus paclitaxel and cisplatin in treating patients who have 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 and decrease the need for surgery. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy followed by observation or surgery to remove the bladder (cystectomy) in treating patients who have stage II or stage III cancer of the urothelium. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of paclitaxel in treating patients who have recurrent or persistent ovarian epithelial cancer or primary peritoneal cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Peripheral stem cell transplantation may be able to replace immune cells that were destroyed by chemotherapy or radiation therapy used to kill tumor cells. It is not yet known whether chemotherapy alone is more effective than chemotherapy plus peripheral stem cell transplantation for ovarian epithelial cancer. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of paclitaxel and carboplatin with that of carboplatin, mitoxantrone, and cyclophosphamide followed by peripheral stem cell transplantation in treating patients who have persistent stage III or stage IV ovarian epithelial cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Vaccines made from tumor tissue may make the body build an immune response and kill tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of vaccine therapy in treating patients who have stage III or stage IV ovarian epithelial cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy 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 II trial to study the effectiveness of amifostine in reducing the risk of side effects caused by cisplatin and paclitaxel in treating women who have ovarian, peritoneal, cervical, fallopian tube, uterine, or endometrial cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Estrogen can stimulate the growth of tumor cells. Hormone therapy using tamoxifen and megestrol may fight endometrial cancer by blocking the absorption of estrogen. It is not yet known whether chemotherapy is more effective than hormone therapy in treating endometrial cancer. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy with that of hormone therapy in treating patients who have recurrent, stage III, or stage IV endometrial cancer. Read Less