Antineoplaston Therapy in Treating Patients With Brain Stem Glioma

• Status: Completed
• Trial end date: 2007-09-01
• Target enrollment: 0
• Participant gender: All

Summary

RATIONALE: Current therapies for a brain stem glioma provide very limited benefit to the patient. The anti-cancer properties of Antineoplaston therapy suggest that it may prove beneficial in the treatment of brain stem gliomas.

PURPOSE: This study is being performed to determine the effects (good and bad) that Antineoplaston therapy has on children (> 6 months of age) and adults with newly-diagnosed or recurrent brain stem gliomas.

• Phase: Phase 2
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers?: No

Details

• Lead Sponsor: Burzynski Research Institute

Criteria

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Histologically confirmed (except if medically contraindicated) brain stem glioma that is unlikely to respond to existing therapy and for which no curative therapy exists.

• Tumor must be at least 5 mm in maximum diameter

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age:

• 6 months or greater

Performance status:

• Karnofsky 60-100%

Life expectancy:

• At least 2 months

Hematopoietic:

• WBC at least 2,000/mm^3

• Platelet count greater than 50,000/mm^3

Hepatic:

• Bilirubin no greater than 2.5 mg/dL

• SGOT/SGPT no greater than 5 times upper limit of normal

• No hepatic failure

Renal:

• Creatinine no greater than 2.5 mg/dL

• No history of renal conditions that contraindicate high dosages of sodium

Cardiovascular:

• No severe heart disease

• No uncontrolled hypertension

• No history of congestive heart failure

• No other cardiovascular conditions that contraindicate high dosages of sodium

Pulmonary:

• No severe lung disease

Other:

• Not pregnant or nursing

• Fertile patients must use effective contraception during and for 4 weeks after study participation

• No serious active infections or fever

• No other serious concomitant disease

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy:

• At least 4 weeks since prior immunotherapy

• No concurrent immunomodulating agents

Chemotherapy:

• At least 4 weeks since prior chemotherapy (6 weeks for nitrosoureas)

• No concurrent antineoplastic agents

Endocrine therapy:

• Concurrent corticosteroids for cerebral edema allowed (must be on stable dose for at least 1 week before study entry)

Radiotherapy:

• At least 8 weeks since prior radiotherapy

Surgery:

• Not specified

Other:

• No prior Antineoplaston therapy