View clinical trials related to Myelodysplastic Syndrome.
Filter by:The purpose of this study is to determine the effectiveness and safety of two different dose schedules of DACOGEN® (decitabine) for Injection in patients with Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS).
The purpose of this study is to learn about possible changes in brain anatomy and in thinking abilities, such as memory skills, in patients with cancer who receive treatment with chemotherapy alone or in combination with total body radiation before undergoing stem cell transplantation.
In this study two cord blood collections will be used to increase the number of cord blood cells you will receive on transplant day. We call this a "double unit" cord blood transplant. A previous study suggests double unit cord blood transplant may have a better result. The main purpose of this study is to find out how good a cord blood transplant using two cord blood collections from two different babies is at curing you of your cancer. Double unit cord blood transplants are now being studied as a way to increase the number of cord blood cells given to bigger children and adult patients. Based on studies that have already been done double unit cord blood transplant appears to be safer than if only one cord blood unit is used. However, double unit cord blood transplant is a fairly new form of treatment.
This is a phase II, single-center study to evaluate the efficacy of a novel cytoreductive regimen followed by CD34+E- selected T cell depleted allogeneic stem cell (or soybean agglutinated and E-rosetted BM) transplant as treatment for patients with acute and chronic leukemias, lymphoma and myelodysplstic syndrome/PNH. The impact of the change in conditioning regimen and use of CD34-selected T cell depleted PBSCs on transplanted related morbidity and mortality and disease free survival will be assessed.
The purpose of this research study is:(1) to determine if high doses of chemotherapy without total body irradiation can allow selected stem cells to take and grow,(2) to determine if selected stem cells from the blood or marrow can take and not cause a complication called graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) and (3) to evaluate the side effects of the combination of chemotherapy drugs used for these transplants. In the last 10 years we have developed chemotherapy combinations to be used for this T-cell depleted transplant protocol. By using three chemotherapy drugs (IV busulfan, melphalan and fludarabine), we hope to have a good chemotherapy combination to kill cancer cells, and to make the graft take, without the side effects of total body irradiation. The chemotherapy drugs to be tested in this protocol are busulfan, melphalan and fludarabine, all of which have been used successfully for stem cell transplantation, but not given together as in this specific regimen. This is what is being tested in this study. Our initial trials in the 1980's with T-cell depleted transplants showed less GvHD, but the overall results of the transplants were not better. The reason for this was that the stem cells did not take and engraft in 15% of our adult patients. This failure of the stem cells to take can leave patients without bone marrow or blood cells necessary for life. Most stem cell transplants were done using bone marrow (BMA) obtained from the donors. However, if we give a medication called G-CSF by shots to the donor, we can collect peripheral blood stem cells (PBSC) and use them for transplant. The advantage of this approach is that we can collect 2-20 times more stem cells than that obtained from the marrow. It has been proven that a larger number of stem cells in the graft make it more difficult for the patient to reject the stem cells. Some donors may be too small to provide peripheral blood stem cells or they may not want to take G-CSF shots. In these cases the donors will have their marrow collected in the operating room under general anesthesia. Stem cell transplants can lead to a condition known as acute graft-versus-host disease or GvHD. This disease is caused by an assault by certain cells in the marrow or blood (T-cells) of the donor (graft) against your body (the host). These T-cells see your body as foreign and attack it. The disease causes a skin rash, liver disease, and diarrhea. Methods were developed at this institution to prevent GvHD. These methods take out most of the T-cells (responsible for GvHD) from the marrow or blood stem cells before transplant. This is called "T-cell depletion" or "stem cell selection". In this hospital, we use two types of methods of T-cell depletion: one method is used with peripheral blood stem cells and one for bone marrow. Both these techniques have been successful in preventing both acute and chronic GvHD. You will receive a T-cell depleted stem cell transplant.
The goal of this clinical research study is to find the highest tolerable dose of Azacytidine (5-azacytidine) combined with cytosine arabinoside (ara-C) for the treatment of patients with relapsed and/or refractory Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) or high-risk Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS). The safety and effectiveness of this treatment combination will also be studied.
The goals of the study are (Phase I) to determine the appropriate dose for Clofarabine with Busulfan as a full-intensity conditioning (Clo/BU4 regimen) prior to transplant and then (Phase II) to investigate the safety and effectiveness of this regimen as a conditioning for stem cell transplant in the treatment of aggressive hematologic malignancies in subjects where more conventional approaches are failing.
Patients are being asked to participate in this study because treatment for their disease requires a stem cell transplant (SCT). Stem cells are the source of normal blood cells found in the bone marrow and lead to recovery of blood counts after bone marrow transplantation. With stem cell transplants, regardless of whether the donor is a full match to the patient or not, there is a risk of developing graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). GVHD is a serious and sometimes fatal side effect of SCT. GVHD occurs when the new donor stem cells (graft) recognizes that the body tissues of the patient (host) are different from those of the donor. When this happens, cells in the graft may attack the host organs. How much this happens and how severe the GVHD is depends on many things, including how different the donors cells are, the strength of the drugs given in preparation for the transplant, the quality of transplanted cells and the age of the person receiving the transplant. Typically, acute GVHD occurs in the first 100 days following transplant, while chronic GVHD occurs after day 100. Acute GVHD most often involves the skin, where it can cause anywhere from a mild rash to complete removal of skin; liver, where it can anywhere from a rise in liver function tests to liver failure; and the gut, where it can cause anywhere from mild diarrhea to profuse, life-threatening diarrhea. Most patients who develop GVHD experience a mild to moderate form, but some patients develop the severe, life-threatening form. Previous studies have shown that patients who receive SCT's can have a lower number of special T cells in their blood, called regulatory T cells, than people who have not received stem cell transplants. When regulatory T cells are low, there appears to be an increased rate of severe, acute GVHD. A drug known as IL-2 (Proleukin) has been shown to increase the number of regulatory T cells in patients following stem cell transplant, and in this study investigators plan to give low dose IL-2 after transplant. This study is called a phase II study because its major purpose is to find out whether using a low-dose of IL-2 will be effective in preventing acute GVHD. Other important purposes are to find out if this treatment helps the patient's immune system recover regulatory T cells faster after the transplant. This study will assess the safety and toxicity of low-dose IL-2 given to patients after transplantation and determine whether this drug is helpful in preventing GVHD.
Allogeneic stem cell transplantation may provide long-term remissions for some patients with hematological malignancies. However, allogeneic transplantation is associated with a significant risk of potentially life threatening complications due to the effects of chemotherapy and radiation on the body and the risks of serious infection. In addition, patients may develop a condition called Graft versus host disease that arises from an inflammatory reaction of the donor cells against the recipient's normal tissues. The risk of graft versus host disease is somewhat increased in patients who are receiving a transplant from an unrelated donor. One approach to reduce the toxicity of allogeneic transplantation is a strategy call nonmyeloablative or "mini" transplants. In this approach, patients receive a lower dose of chemotherapy in an effort to limit treatment related side effects. Patients undergoing this kind of transplant remain at risk for graft versus host disease particularly if they receive a transplant from an unrelated donor. The purpose of this research study is to examine the ability of a drug called CAMPATH-1H to reduce the risk of graft versus host disease and make transplantation safer. CAMPATH-1H binds to and eliminates cells in the system such as T cells that can cause graft versus host disease (GvHD). As a result, earlier studies have shown that patients who receive CAMPATH-1H with an allogeneic transplant have a lower risk of GvHD. In the present study, we will examine the impact of treatment with CAMPATH-1H as part of an allogeneic transplant on the development of GvHD and infection. In addition, we will study the effects of CAMPATH-1H on the immune system by testing blood samples in the laboratory.
Objectives: Primary: To evaluate the response rate of total cytokine-immunotherapy for low-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). Secondary: To evaluate response duration, survival and side effects of the treatment.