Overview

Combination Chemotherapy Before Surgery in Treating Patients With Mesothelioma of the Lung

Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2003-08-01
Target enrollment:
0
Participant gender:
All
Summary
RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Giving chemotherapy drugs before surgery may shrink the tumor so that it can be removed during surgery. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of combination chemotherapy in treating patients who have mesothelioma of the lung.
Phase:
Phase 2
Accepts Healthy Volunteers?
No
Details
Lead Sponsor:
Swiss Group for Clinical Cancer Research
Treatments:
Gemcitabine
Criteria
DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

- Histologically and clinically confirmed pleural mesothelioma

- Stages T1-3, N0-2, M0 by CT scan of the chest

- Mediastinoscopy required for staging of mediastinal lymph nodes

- Considered completely resectable

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age:

- Over 18

Performance status:

- WHO 0-2

Life expectancy:

- Not specified

Hematopoietic:

- Not specified

Hepatic:

- No severe liver disease

Renal:

- Creatinine no greater than 1.7 mg/dL

Cardiac:

- Adequate cardiac function

- No cardiac disease that would preclude forced hydration or surgery

Pulmonary:

- Predicted postoperative FEV_1 greater than 1 by spirometry

Other:

- No contraindication to surgery

- No other prior or concurrent malignancy except adequately treated carcinoma in situ of
the cervix or basal cell or squamous cell skin cancer

- No uncontrolled infection

- No uncontrolled diabetes

- No neurologic or psychiatric disorders that would preclude study compliance

- No other serious illnesses that would preclude study participation

- No other circumstances that would preclude study participation

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy

- Not specified

Chemotherapy

- Not specified

Endocrine therapy

- Not specified

Radiotherapy

- Not specified

Surgery

- No prior pleurectomy or lung resection except for diagnostic purposes