Paclitaxel and Radiation Therapy in Treating Patients Undergoing Surgery for Stage II or Stage III Breast Cancer
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2004-11-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as paclitaxel, work in different ways to stop the
growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing.
Radiation therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill tumor cells. Giving paclitaxel and
radiation therapy before surgery may make the tumor smaller and reduce the amount of normal
tissue that needs to be removed. Giving chemotherapy after surgery may kill any tumor cells
that remain after surgery.
PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying how well giving paclitaxel together with radiation
therapy works in treating patients undergoing surgery for stage II or stage III breast
cancer.