View clinical trials related to Liver Diseases.
Filter by:This is a phase I study of the experimental anticancer drug oxaliplatin. It is designed to establish the maximum dose of the drug that can be given safely to patients with cancer who have impaired liver function and to determine the drug's side effects. It will also examine how liver function affects the drug's elimination from the body. The liver plays an important role in the elimination of many anticancer drugs, and patients with impaired liver function should not take certain drugs or should take them in reduced doses. Patients 18 years of age and older with cancer that has metastasized (spread from the original tumor site) and for whom standard treatment is not available or is no longer effective may be eligible for this study. Candidates will be screened with various tests and procedures that may include physical examination, computerized tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, chest X-rays, and blood and urine tests. Participants will be given oxaliplatin in doses determined according to their level of liver function. Patients may have normal liver function or mildly, moderately or severely impaired liver function, or may have had a liver transplant. Oxaliplatin will be infused intravenously (through a vein) over two hours on the first day of 21-day treatment cycles-that is, once every 3 weeks. Treatment will continue as long as the cancer is under control and side effects do not require stopping the drug. Urine will be collected over 48 hours after the infusion to determine how much of the drug is eliminated in urine. Blood tests will be done to monitor safety of the treatment, and imaging studies, such as X-rays, CT and MRI scans, will be done periodically to evaluate the tumor's response to treatment. Special blood tests will also be done to study how oxaliplatin is eliminated from the body. With the first dose of the drug, blood samples will be collected just before the infusion begins, just before it ends, 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 1, 2, 4, 6, 24, 48, and 72 hours after the infusion, and again 1 week and 3 weeks later. Additional blood samples may be collected at the third treatment cycle.
The diverse clinical syndromes associated with hepatitis C underscore the multifactorial and polygenic nature of HCV infection. Both viral and host factors likely contribute to variations in infection outcome, disease susceptibility and progression, and treatment response. This protocol will focus on the immunogenetics of HCV infection. Various candidate genes, most of them related to host immune response in microbial infection, have defined genetic polymorphisms that have been associated with variable manifestations of infections including malaria, tuberculosis, leprosy, AIDS and hepatitis B. In this proposal, we plan to collect peripheral blood mononuclear cells as a source of DNA from approximately 1500 patients with HCV infection, analyze genetic polymorphisms of various candidate genes in association with viral clearance, disease progression or treatment response, and characterize the functional consequences of these polymorphisms in patients with well-defined clinical sequelae of HCV infection. We will also collect blood from patients with other forms of liver diseases (approximately 300) or normal volunteers (approximately 200) as controls. By identifying relevant host factors genetically and investigating their molecular interactions with HCV, we may gain additional insights into HCV pathogenesis and uncover new potential targets for vaccine development and treatment intervention.
To compare the clinical, biochemical, and histological status of Non-A, Non-B post-transfusion hepatitis patients with that of patients who did not develop post-transfusion hepatitis.
To elucidate the role of hepatitis delta virus (HDV) in the development of chronic liver disease in patients with hemophilia.
To determine the prevalence of hepatitis delta virus (HDV) in a large cohort of hemophiliacs and to elucidate the role of HDV in the development and progression of liver disease in this population.
This study will use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to examine blood flow patterns in the arteries and veins of the liver and abdomen. It will 1) determine the best way to measure blood flow in these vessels, and 2) make detailed measurements of the blood flow patterns of these vessels. Information about normal liver blood flow may help explain the role of blood flow in liver disease. Normal healthy volunteers 18 years of age and older may be eligible for this study. They will undergo MRI-a diagnostic tool that uses a strong magnetic field and radio waves to show structural and chemical changes in tissue and the speed of moving blood. The patient lies on a stretcher inside a metal cylinder (the scanner) for 1 to 1.5 hours and will be required to lie very still for 10 to 15 minutes at a time. Blood pressure, heart rate, breathing and the amount of oxygen in the fingertip are measured during the scan.
To examine the pharmacokinetics (blood levels) and bioavailability of zidovudine (AZT) given to patients with HIV infection and chronic liver disease. The specific aim of the study is to provide data permitting the development of guidelines for use of AZT in patients with mild, moderate, or severe liver disease. AZT is the only antiviral agent that has been shown to be effective in patients with severe HIV infection. However, AZT is largely eliminated from the body through a biochemical reaction that takes place in the liver, and it is possible that patients with underlying liver disease may have altered AZT pharmacokinetics and may metabolize AZT differently, with the result that they are susceptible to an increased risk of serious drug toxicity. This study will examine the pharmacokinetics, elimination, and metabolism of AZT in patients with liver disease. Guidelines developed from the data will be helpful in managing AZT treatment of these HIV-infected persons and will indicate whether the dose of AZT administered should be adjusted to compensate for any changes in its bioavailability and/or pharmacokinetics.
To determine the efficacy of a hepatitis vaccine in preventing hepatitis B.
To evaluate whether hepatitis B immune globulin with a high level of antibody against the hepatitis B antigen would be capable of interrupting maternal-fetal transmission of hepatitis B virus, the single most important route of hepatitis spread in the entire Third World.