Paclitaxel Treatment Options in Massachusetts

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: 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

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 metastatic or recurrent head and neck cancer. Read Less

Drugs used in chemotherapy work in different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Monoclonal antibodies, such as bevacizumab, can block cancer growth in different ways. Some block the ability of cancer cells to grow and spread. Others find cancer cells and help kill them or deliver cancer-killing substances to them. Combining chemotherapy with a monoclonal antibody may kill more tumor cells. This randomized phase II/III trial is to see if combination chemotherapy works better with or without bevacizumab in treating patients who have advanced, metastatic, or recurrent non-small cell lung cance Read Less

The purpose of this trial is to see if Abraxane, which is a new form of paclitaxel, is safe as a replacement form of paclitaxel in dose-dense chemotherapy. This trial will also determine if using Abraxane will allow patients to receive treatment every two weeks without requiring injects of G-CSF, a white blood cell stimulating growth factor. 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. Colony-stimulating factors such as filgrastim may increase the number of immune cells found in bone marrow or peripheral blood and may help a person's immune system recover from the side effects of chemotherapy. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy plus filgrastim in treating patients who have previously untreated extensive-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. It is not yet known if surgery plus combination chemotherapy is more effective than surgery alone for non-small cell lung cancer. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of surgery with or without combination chemotherapy in treating patients who have non-small cell lung cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as carboplatin, paclitaxel, gemcitabine, and cisplatin, 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. Giving chemotherapy before radiation therapy, and combining chemotherapy with radiation therapy, may kill more tumor cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of neoadjuvant gemcitabine, paclitaxel, and carboplatin followed by cisplatin and radiation therapy in treating patients who have locally advanced or recurrent carcinoma (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. It is not yet known whether combination chemotherapy is more effective with or without filgrastim in treating breast cancer. PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of combining doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, and paclitaxel with or without filgrastim in treating women who have inflammatory or locally advanced breast cancer. Read Less

Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of paclitaxel with that of doxorubicin in treating patients who have advanced AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma. Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. It is not yet known whether paclitaxel is more effective than doxorubicin in treating patients with advanced AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop cancer cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to damage tumor cells. Chemoprotective drugs, such as amifostine, may protect normal cells from the side effects of chemotherapy. PURPOSE: Phase I/II trial to study the effectiveness of paclitaxel and radiation therapy plus chemoprotection with amifostine in treating patients with stage III or stage IV head and neck cancer. Read Less

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as paclitaxel and carboplatin, work in different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Monoclonal antibodies such as cetuximab can locate tumor cells and either kill them or deliver tumor-killing substances to them without harming normal cells. Combining more than one chemotherapy drug with a monoclonal antibody may kill more tumor cells. It is not yet known whether cetuximab is more effective when given at the same time as chemotherapy or following chemotherapy. PURPOSE: This randomized phase II trial is studying how well giving cetuximab at the same time as combination chemotherapy works compared to giving cetuximab after combination chemotherapy in treating patients with stage IIIB or stage IV non-small cell lung cancer. Read Less