Clinical Trials Search at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center

This phase III trial compares how well endobronchial ultrasound-transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) versus EBUS-TBNA plus transbronchial mediastinal cryobiopsy works to obtain adequate tissue samples for next generation sequencing (NGS). During usual care, if there is suspicion of cancer, a procedures known as an EBUS-TBNA is done to take sample of lymph nodes to evaluate for cancer spread. If there is suspected cancer in the lymph nodes, multiple samples are taken for molecular testing (NGS) to help guide treatment decisions. It requires a certain amount of tissue to send for the molecular testing which can be achieved with EBUS-TBNA about 70% of the time. Researchers want to find out if adding a biopsy tool currently used in usual care, known as a cryoprobe, can acquire more tissue for molecular analysis. The cryoprobe uses a freezing technique to biopsy and can potentially gather larger and higher quality tissue samples than the standard EBUS-TBNA method.

This trial studies the impact of indwelling tunneled pleural drainage systems (gravity or vacuum based) on pain in patients with plural effusion that has come back (recurrent). Vacuum drainage and gravity drainage are two commonly used drainage methods. Studying the best drainage methods may help future patients undergoing indwelling tunneled pleural catheter placement.