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This phase II trial studies the effect of pembrolizumab alone compared to the usual approach (chemotherapy [cisplatin and carboplatin] plus radiation therapy) after surgery in treating patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma that has come back (recurrent) or patients with a second head and neck cancer that is not from metastasis (primary). Radiation therapy uses high energy radiation or protons to kill tumor cells and shrink tumors. Cisplatin is in a class of medications known as platinum-containing compounds. It works by killing, stopping or slowing the growth of cancer cells. Carboplatin is also in a class of medications known as platinum-containing compounds. It works in a way similar to the anticancer drug cisplatin, but may be better tolerated than cisplatin. Carboplatin works by killing, stopping or slowing the growth of cancer cells. Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as pembrolizumab, may help the body's immune system attack the cancer and may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Giving pembrolizumab alone after surgery may work better than the usual approach in shrinking recurrent or primary head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

This phase II trial studies the best approach to combine chemotherapy and radiation therapy (RT) based on the patients response to induction chemotherapy in patients with non-germinomatous germ cell tumors (NGGCT) that have not spread to other parts of the brain or body (localized). This study has 2 goals: 1) optimizing radiation for patients who respond well to induction chemotherapy to diminish spinal cord relapses, 2) utilizing higher dose chemotherapy followed by conventional RT in patients who did not respond to induction chemotherapy. Chemotherapy drugs, such as carboplatin, etoposide, ifosfamide, and thiotepa, 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 or high-energy protons to kill tumor cells and shrink tumors. Studies have shown that patients with newly-diagnosed localized NGGCT, whose disease responds well to chemotherapy before receiving radiation therapy, are more likely to be free of the disease for a longer time than are patients for whom the chemotherapy does not efficiently eliminate or reduce the size of the tumor. The purpose of this study is to see how well the tumors respond to induction chemotherapy to decide what treatment to give next. Some patients will be given RT to the spine and a portion of the brain. Others will be given high dose chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant before RT to the whole brain and spine. Giving treatment based on the response to induction chemotherapy may lower the side effects of radiation in some patients and adjust the therapy to a more efficient one for other patients with localized NGGCT.

This phase II Pediatric MATCH trial studies how well ensartinib works in treating patients with solid tumors, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, or histiocytic disorders with ALK or ROS1 genomic alterations that have come back (recurrent) or does not respond to treatment (refractory) and may have spread from where it first started to nearby tissue, lymph nodes, or distant parts of the body (advanced). Ensartinib may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth.

This phase II trial studies whether adding pembrolizumab to olaparib (standard of care) works better than olaparib alone in treating patients with pancreatic cancer with germline BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations that has spread to other places in the body (metastatic). BRCA1 and BRCA2 are human genes that produce tumor suppressor proteins. These proteins help repair damaged deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and, therefore, play a role in ensuring the stability of each cells genetic material. When either of these genes is mutated, or altered, such that its protein product is not made or does not function correctly, DNA damage may not be repaired properly. As a result, cells are more likely to develop additional genetic alterations that can lead to some types of cancer, including pancreatic cancer. Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as pembrolizumab, may help the body's immune system attack the cancer, and may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Olaparib is an inhibitor of PARP, a protein that helps repair damaged DNA. Blocking PARP may help keep tumor cells from repairing their damaged DNA, causing them to die. PARP inhibitors are a type of targeted therapy. The addition of pembrolizumab to the usual treatment of olaparib may help to shrink tumors in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer with BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations.

This phase II trial tests whether adding nivolumab to the usual treatment (encorafenib and cetuximab) works better than the usual treatment alone to shrink tumors in patients with colorectal cancer that has spread to other places in the body (metastatic) or that cannot be removed by surgery (unresectable) and whose tumor has a mutation in a gene called BRAF. Encorafenib is in a class of medications called kinase inhibitors. It is used in patients whose cancer has a certain mutation (change) in the BRAF gene. It works by blocking the action of mutated BRAF that signals cancer cells to multiply. This helps to stop or slow the spread of cancer cells. Cetuximab is in a class of medications called monoclonal antibodies. It binds to a protein called EGFR, which is found on some types of cancer cells. This may help keep cancer cells from growing. 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. Giving nivolumab in combination with encorafenib and cetuximab may be more effective than encorafenib and cetuximab alone at stopping tumor growth and spreading in patients with metastatic or unresectable BRAF-mutant colorectal cancer.