Perioperative Therapy for Resectable Pancreatic Cancer
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2016-12-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
This phase II trial studies how well giving combination chemotherapy together with
intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and surgery works in treating patients with
localized pancreatic cancer that can be removed by surgery. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such
as gemcitabine hydrochloride, docetaxel, capecitabine, and oxaliplatin, 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. Specialized
radiation therapy, such as IMRT, that delivers a high dose of radiation directly to the tumor
may kill more tumor cells and cause less damage to normal tissue. Giving more than one drug
(combination chemotherapy) together with intensity-modulated 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.