View clinical trials related to Head and Neck Neoplasms.
Filter by:Cetuximab, erlotinib, and panitumumab are all recently FDA approved epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitors that treat a wide variety of tumor types, such as colon, lung, and head and neck. Blockade of the EGFR results in inhibition of multiple downstream pathways, leading to slowed tumor growth. In addition, these inhibitors may enhance anti-tumor immune responses through uncharacterized mechanisms. While producing significant responses in many settings, EGFR inhibitors also result in significant skin toxicity (rash) in a high percentage of patients. Multiple studies have correlated the presence and severity of rash with clinical response. Unfortunately, severe rash can often lead to dose delays, reductions, or even discontinuation of EGFR inhibitors, thus limiting their efficacy. The mechanism of both the rash and its correlation with tumor response is poorly understood. Skin biopsies display a robust leukocyte infiltrate, but a systematic analysis of the type of infiltrating leukocytes, activation state, or homing receptor expression has not been performed. Chemokines and chemokine receptors control leukocyte trafficking to the skin and other tissue sites, and defined receptor profiles for skin-, gut-, and lung-homing leukocytes are well established. In this study, the investigators propose to evaluate the homing phenotype of leukocytes from peripheral blood and skin biopsies of patients receiving EGFR inhibitors. The investigators will use RNA microarrays to evaluate the expression of chemokines and other key genes regulated in skin during treatment. The investigators will utilize in vitro methods to investigate effects of EGFR inhibitors on imprinting of T cell tissue-specific homing receptors. The investigators will examine correlations among the pathologic data, clinical findings, and tumor response. If validated, peripheral blood evaluation could potentially be used as a predictive indicator for patients receiving EGFR inhibitors. This study may also identify novel targets for limiting skin toxicity while receiving EGFR inhibitors, thus allowing maximal dosing and clinical response from these agents.
We hope to determine the importance of different genes (including B receptors) in anthracycline-induced cardiomyopathy. This has important benefits to patients exposed to anthracyclines, as this could help determine whether certain individuals have increased susceptibility to cardiac injury.
We have developed a prototype PET insert device that can be integrated into a clinical PET/computed tomography (CT) scanner to improve its image resolution to approximately 2.5 mm in all 3 dimensions within a reduced imaging field of view (FOV). This zoom-in imaging capability provides 6-fold improvement in volumetric image resolution over the current state-of-the-art clinical PET scanner, offering a tremendous opportunity for cancer imaging applications, in particular for those cases where a lymph node involvement will drastically alter the patient management plan. Accurate diagnosis and staging of head-and-neck cancer is known to be challenging because of the complex anatomy and large number of lymph nodes involved in this region. As a result, head and neck cancer imaging is an ideal candidate for evaluating the clinical usefulness of this novel imaging device.
Wide excision of head and neck cancer with microsurgical free flap's reconstruction (FFR) results to a high cancer cure rate and a good functional recovery. However, this long complex procedure is accompanied with considerable complications. Excessive fluid administration during this type of surgery has been connected with poor results. There is growing evidence that goal-directed fluid management (GDFM) might improve the results in high-risk patients. Hypothesis: Goal directed fluid management will reduce intraoperative fluid volume administered to patients undergoing head and neck reconstructive surgery.
Reduced RT with Pac/Cis vs. standard RCT with 5-FU/Cis
This phase II trial is evaluating the efficacy of concurrent chemoradiation therapy with weekly docetaxel and cisplatin combination regimen.
The purpose of this study is to compare the effects, good and/or bad, of the Methylphenidate patch and a placebo patch (a patch that contains no medicine) on patients and their fatigue caused by cancer or by cancer treatment. The Methylphenidate patch contains a medication that is known to increase alertness and wakefulness. Oral methylphenidate has been used in the past to treat cancer related fatigue and is often used to treat unusual sleepiness. But this is the first time that the patch form is offered to try treating cancer fatigue in patients who cannot always swallow tablets.
This study aims to study the impact image guided radiotherapy with Cone beam CT will have on the outcomes(toxicities and response) of head and neck cancer when compared to 3D conformal radiotherapy without CBCT based setup error verification.Also,the various dosimetric variations in Adaptive RT will be studied.
RATIONALE: Everolimus may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth and by blocking blood flow to the tumor. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well everolimus works in treating patients with progressive or recurrent, unresectable, or metastatic thyroid cancer.
The purpose of this study is to test the preventive effects of a combination of drugs: polyphenon E (PPE) derived from green tea extracts, and erlotinib. Because this combination of drugs has not been tested in humans before for the prevention of cancer, it is not clear which dose of each agent will be optimal in combination. We will test the safety of the combination of PPE and erlotinib and see what effects (good and/or bad) it has on the patient's premalignant lesion, and find the highest dose of each agent that can be given in combination without causing severe side effects.