Clinical Trials Search at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center

This phase II trial investigates the effect of avelumab or hydroxychloroquine sulfate with or without palbociclib in treating patients with stage II-III breast cancer that is positive for disseminated tumor cells (DTCs) after curative therapy. DTCs are breast cancer cells that are asleep (dormant) in the bone marrow. There are multiple ways in which these cells stay alive, and three of these mechanisms are inhibited by the drugs in this trial. First, dormant cancer cells need a protein signal pathway involving CDK 4/6 to start dividing once they wake up in order to survive as an active cancer cell. Palbociclib works by blocking the CDK 4/6 protein and by doing so may limit the dormant cancer cell from being able to survive. In addition, palbociclib may also help both of the other drugs in the trial to work better. Second, dormant cancer cells also use a process called autophagy to generate their own nutrition, which can allow them to stay asleep. Hydroxychloroquine has been shown to block autophagy, which leads to starvation of the cells. Third, dormant cancer cells are able to hide from the bodys immune system. The immune system sends a type of cell called T cells throughout the body to detect and fight infections and diseasesincluding cancers. One way the immune system controls the activity of T cells is through the PD-1/PD-L1 (programmed cell death protein-1) pathway. However, some cancer cells hide from T-cell attack by taking control of the PD-1/PD-L1 interaction and this stops T cells from attacking cancer cells. Avelumab is an antibody designed to block the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway and helps the immune system in detecting and fighting dormant cancer cells. Because palbociclib, hydroxychloroquine, and avelumab work on the mechanisms that keep the dormant cells alive, taking one or a combination of these drugs may be able to eliminate DTCs.

This phase II trial tests whether nivolumab and ipilimumab works to shrink tumors in patients with liver cancer that has spread to nearby tissue or lymph nodes (locally advanced), has spread to other places in the body (metastatic), or cannot be removed by surgery (unresectable). Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as nivolumab and ipilimumab, may help the body's immune system attack the cancer, and may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Nivolumab and ipilimumab may be effective in killing tumor cells in patients with liver cancer.

The purpose of this study is to assess the efficacy and safety of co-formulated
pembrolizumab/quavonlimab versus other treatments in participants with MSI-H or dMMR
Metastatic Stage IV Colorectal Cancer.

This protocol describes prospective, open-label, blinded, randomized controlled, multicenter
pivotal studies to evaluate ALM-488.

This phase II trial tests how well evaluating circulating tumor deoxyribonucleic acid (ctDNA) works to guide therapy-change decisions in treating patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) that has spread from where it first started (primary site) to other places in the body (metastatic). This study wants to learn if small pieces of DNA associated with a tumor (called circulating tumor DNA, or ctDNA) can be detected in investigational blood tests during the course of standard chemotherapy treatment for breast cancer, and whether information from such investigational ctDNA blood testing could possibly be used as an early indication of chemotherapy treatment failure. It is hoped that additional information from investigational blood testing for ctDNA could help doctors to switch more quickly from a standard chemotherapy treatment that typically has significant side effects and which may not be working, to a different standard treatment regimen against TNBC, called sacituzumab govitecan. Sacituzumab govitecan is a monoclonal antibody, called hRS7, linked to a chemotherapy drug, called irinotecan. hRS7 is a form of targeted therapy because it attaches to specific molecules (receptors) on the surface of cancer cells, known as TROP2 receptors, and delivers irinotecan to kill them. Studying ctDNA may assist doctors to change therapy earlier if needed, and may improve health outcomes in patients with metastatic TNBC.

This phase II trial studies the effect of hypofractionated radiotherapy followed by surgery in treating patients with soft tissue sarcoma. Hypofractionated radiation therapy delivers higher doses of radiation therapy over a shorter period of time and may kill more tumor cells and have fewer side effects. Giving hypofractionated radiotherapy followed by surgery may allow patients with sarcomas to be treated in a much more rapid and convenient fashion.

This phase I/II trial studies the side effects and best dose of a combination of gabapentin and ketamine and to see how well it works to prevent acute and chronic pain in patients receiving chemotherapy and radiation therapy (chemoradiation) for head and neck cancer that has spread to nearby tissue or lymph nodes (locally advanced). Gabapentin is a medication that is commonly used to treat nerve related pain. Specifically, it has been used to treat pain involving the mouth, throat and nasal passages in head and neck cancer patients treated with radiation. Ketamine is a type of general anesthetic that blocks pathways to the brain involved with sensing pain. This trial may help doctors determine how patients tolerate the combination of gabapentin and ketamine and to find the correct dosing for ketamine in those taking gabapentin. This will be the basis for a future, larger study to look at how effective this combination is at reducing and/or preventing pain in head and neck cancer patients.

This phase II trial tests how well nivolumab in combination with chemotherapy drugs along with radiation therapy works in treating patients with nasopharyngeal cancer. Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as nivolumab, may help the body's immune system attack the cancer, and may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Chemotherapy drugs, such as gemcitabine and cisplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. Radiation therapy uses high energy x-rays, particles, or radioactive seeds to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Researchers want to find out what effects, good and/or bad, adding nivolumab to chemotherapy has on patients with newly diagnosed NPC. In addition, they want to find out if children with NPC may be treated with less radiation therapy and whether this decreases the side effects of therapy.

This phase II trial tests how well giving durvalumab with standard chemotherapy, gemcitabine and cisplatin, before surgery works in treating patients with high risk liver cancer (cholangiocarcinoma) that can be removed by surgery (resectable). Durvalumab is a monoclonal antibody that may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Chemotherapy drugs, such as gemcitabine and cisplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. Giving durvalumab with gemcitabine and cisplatin before surgery may make the tumor smaller and reduce the amount of normal tissue that needs to be removed in patients with high risk resectable cholangiocarcinoma.

This study is being done to find out if tucatinib with other cancer drugs works better than
standard of care to treat participants with HER2 positive colorectal cancer. This study will
also test what side effects happen when participants take this combination of drugs. A side
effect is anything a drug does to the body besides treating your disease.

Participants in this study have colorectal cancer that has spread through the body
(metastatic) and/or cannot be removed with surgery (unresectable).

Participants will be assigned randomly to the tucatinib group or standard of care group. The
tucatinib group will get tucatinib, trastuzumab, and mFOLFOX6. The standard of care group
will get either:

- mFOLFOX6 alone,

- mFOLFOX6 with bevacizumab, or

- mFOLFOX6 with cetuximab mFOLFOX6 is a combination of multiple drugs. All of the drugs
given in this study are used to treat this type of cancer.